Shadows Are Darker in the Light
by Shima2112
Summary: It all began without a goodbye. And things only seemed to escalate from there. "Yer screams...they sound so lovely..." "I knew you'd come for me..." "I'm not him! Can't you see? I'm just me!" "All because of you, he's...!" "Huh? What are you talking about? I'm..." Involves many dark themes, including suicide/character death. AlbaXRos/Shion, minor AlbaXTeuffel, highschool AU, angst!
1. The Last Time He Saw Him

**Full Summary (I didn't get enough room to paste the whole thing urgghh**—): ******It all began without a goodbye. And things only seemed to escalate from there. "Yer screams...they sound so lovely..." "I knew you'd come for me..." "I'm not him! Can't you see?! I'm just me!" "Just wait a little longer." "Goodbye, everyone. I'm going far, far away. But I'll be alright." "All because of you, he's...!" "Huh? What are you talking about? I'm..." "I just wanted...to have a happy ending." Not for the faint of heart. Involves many dark themes, including suicide/character death. AlbaXRos/Shion, minor AlbaXTeuffel, highschool AU, lots of angst!**

**Author's Note: -prances in and scatters petals everywhere- I HAVE RETURNED!**

**Alba: Yeah, for, like, this one story. **

**Shima: Shush, you. AHEM! Hello, everyone! The name's Shima, but you may call me whatever you like! And I have returned to FFNet for a short amount of time to post this fanfic! ****Now, don't be alarmed. I won't be gone forever. I just decided to come back and post this since it's already three quarters of the way finished and once I get caught up in posting chapters it WILL be finished, so I don't need to worry about leaving it hanging and unfinished for two years.**

**Ros: You are a horrible author, Shima.**

**Shima: -sobs- I'm SORRY, okay?! Life happens, so I stopped writing Fireworks! Don't get angry! Anyway, I'll try to make this as short as possible, so...**

**Welcome to Shadows Are Darker in the Light! The title is a work in progress. I was feeling really angsty due to the recent Senyuu chapters and was struck with inspiration, so I wrote this! I'll probably be posting chapters every three or four days so you won't have to wait too long! The chapters will vary in length depending on where I want to end it at a cliffhanger. -cackles evilly- There aren't any spoilers for the show/manga, unless you count Teuffel, who is a major character in this fic, so if you don't know who he is, go read the manga and catch up! **

_**WARNING WARNING WARNING: **_**This fanfic WILL make you cry. You will scream. You will hate my guts. You will throw bricks and rocks and tables and whatever else is convenient to you. This is NOT for the lighthearted. I may have to bump it up to an M rating if things get too bad. I AM WARNING YOU. You will not be happy with me. This story starts out nice but it only gets worse. It never, EVER gets better. Nope. SO! It contains dark themes like suicide, death, depression, ANGST ANGST ANGST, torture, and even more fun stuff. So, if that's not your cuppa tea, and if you hate seeing your favorite characters spiral into insanity, I suggest you turn back now, because I may end up scarring you for life, and I don't want to be responsible for that. DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU. 'Kay? :) **

**Alba: Wh...what did you do?**

**Shima: ...ALBAAAAAA! I'M SO SORRY I DID THIS TO YOU BUT I LOVE YOU SO MUCH OKAY? OKAY?! I LOVE YOU! **

**Alba: Oh god please help me she did something oh my god—**

**Shima: FORGIVE ME ALBA PLEASE! -sobs-**

**Ros: Even **_**you're**_** a sobbing mess. **

**Shima: I cried when I wrote this, not even joking. Anyway, guys, I think once I'm done I'll post an alternate timeline ending where everything goes RIGHT instead of WRONG and then it'll be a happy ending. Okay? Will that make up for what I've done?**

**Alba & Ros: Yes.**

**Shima: Okay enough rambling! Alba cutie, disclaimer? **

**Alba: Shima doesn't own Senyuu in anyway! All the rights go to Haruhara Robinson! The only thing she owns is the idea for this story and a cookie! **

**Shima: You got that right! YOSH, let's get rolling to breaking people's hearts! **

**Ros: Roll the chappy...**

* * *

><p>Chapter 1<p>

The Last Time He Saw Him

"Good morning, Ros!"

Ros glanced over from his position against the lamppost, crimson red eyes settling on a young teen with light brown hair and sparkling eyes.

"Good morning, Hero."

Alba gave him a huge grin. "Were you waiting for me?"

"Of course not, Hero. I was actually daydreaming about you tripping and breaking your neck on the sidewalk. I guess I lost track of time." He commented casually, beginning to walk in the direction of the school.

"That's so mean!" Alba cried, racing to catch up with him.

"So, won't you do it?"

Alba finally caught up, panting from the effort. Ros could walk really fast! "Do...do what?"

"Trip and break your neck on the sidewalk."

"Wha—_no! _Why would I even think about doing that?!"

Ros sighed dramatically. "Oh, Hero. You're really pathetic."

Alba stuck out his lower lip in a pout. "And you're really sadistic! Geez!"

Ros rolled his eyes, hiding a fond smile. "Come on. We're going to be late for first period." He paused for a moment, "...On second thought, you can be late, so that way the teacher will yell at you in front of everyone."

Alba made a face and smacked his arm playfully. "No way!"

The chuckling pair finally arrived in the classroom not too long after. They were greeted by the sight of all of their friends, sitting in a circle around desks and chairs.

Rchi lifted her head to greet them. "Oh! Alba-san, Ros-san! You're here!"

"Hi, Rchi-chan!" Alba smiled and took a seat beside her, Ros sitting down next to him. They glanced towards Hime, who was currently in the middle of a heated argument with Ares.

"I never said that!"

"Ah, but it's so obvious."

"Sh-shut up! There's no way that I can possibly li...li..." Hime trailed off, looking at Foyfoy (who was clueless as to what was going on) and her face turned bright pink.

"_Nooooo!_" She screamed, lashing out at him. Foyfoy cried out in shock when her fist connected with his face.

"It's a lie! Not true, _not true!_ You must be mistaken, Ares! Yes, that's _got _to be it! _Eeek!_" She shrieked, continuing to rain down punches on Foyfoy, who was unconscious from the initial impact.

Alba heard a sigh come from his left, and he spotted Teuffel curled up in a chair not too far away.

"You're too loud..." He mumbled, strangely swirly eyes meeting Alba's.

Alba watched in curiosity as his cheeks colored, and then he quickly turned away.

"So, Alba-san," Rchi spoke up, tugging on his sleeve, "who do _you_ like?"

"E-eh?" He blinked in surprise. "Li...? What do you mean by that...?"

"I mean, who do you have a crush on, Alba-san? That _is_ what we were talking about just now," Rchi questioned again, tilting her head to the side cutely.

"Wh-wha? I..." He glanced at Ros out of the corner of his eye, who was now on his phone and ignoring the entire conversation. Alba could feel his cheeks turning red, and he inwardly begged himself to stop blushing. "I don't...I d-don't like anybody."

Rchi didn't buy it for a second. "Oh, really? Because it seems to me that you like R—"

Alba shot up out of his chair, startling everyone around him. "_O-oh, _look! There's the teacher! We'd better get in our seats!"

The teacher, who had just walked in, regarded him with amusement. "Thank you, Fruhling-kun. As he said, everyone, take your seats!"

Alba sunk down into his chair, face burning. He could hear Ros snickering beside him. A few seats away, Rchi's gaze bored into him, imploring. He'd barely avoided her question—and her suspicions. Hopefully she'd forget about it and wouldn't bring it up again later.

What a great start to today, he thought sourly. Let's just hope it gets better...

* * *

><p>The day passed without any more life-impacting events, much to Alba's relief. He walked down the familiar road to home, Ros at his side. The sun was setting, splotching the sky with pinks and oranges, casting a soft yellow glow on everything it touched. He couldn't help but notice how the sun's rays lit up Ros' hair, or how it made his crimson eyes bright and a beautiful, deep red color.<p>

Feeling that strange warmth creep into his cheeks again, Alba quickly turned away and directed his attention towards the path in front of him. Both of them were strangely silent today, he noticed. Usually Ros would be teasing him about something and he'd be whining back. This time, though, a quietness had descended upon them, but Alba didn't mind it. It was nice and comfortable. He secretly found himself wishing that days like this would never end...

But it was over too soon when they reached the dreaded intersection where they'd have to part. Alba slowly turned towards the way he was supposed to go, feeling a weird sensation in the pit of his stomach. Why did he have such a strange feeling of...foreboding? Like something bad was going to happen?

Ignoring it to the best of his ability, he smiled at Ros. "'Bye, Ros!"

Ros didn't respond; instead, he stared at him, face gaining an expression Alba couldn't place.

"Alba."

Alba blinked at him, eyes wide. Ros only ever called him Alba when he was really serious about something.

"Ros...?" Alba whispered. "I...is something wrong?"

He didn't have time to react before Ros suddenly swooped forward, gathering him up into his arms in a tight embrace.

Immediately, Alba's face burst into flames. "_Wh-wh-wha—_"

"...Hero," Ros said quietly.

Alba remained there, frozen. "Y...yeah?"

Ros squeezed him a little. "I...need to tell you something..."

"Wh...what is it?" Alba squeaked, heart pounding loudly in his ears.

Ros didn't respond for a long time. Then, "Ah...nevermind. It's not important." He pulled away from Alba.

The brunette sputtered for a few moments, unsure of how to act. Ros gave him a smile, one that was sort of bittersweet.

"You'll be alright, I'm sure." He said, more to himself than to Alba.

"H-huh?"

Ros straightened out, and then his expression returned to normal. "Don't worry about it, Hero. For now, just focus on getting home safely and not getting hit by a car."

Alba's jaw dropped. "_Wha_—why, you!"

Ros laughed loudly, grinning. Then, he turned away. "...'Bye, Hero."

Alba sighed but decided to humor him anyway. "See you tomorrow, Ros."

His heart gave a strange little thump when Ros didn't answer him. Instead, he started walking away, towards his own house in the distance. Puzzled by his recent actions, Alba shrugged and went his own way home, humming to himself along the way.

What he didn't know was that this was the last time he'd ever see Ros.

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: DUN DUN DUN~<strong>

**Alba: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HIM?!**

**Shima: I'm not telling.**

**Alba: -eye turns red- What was that?**

**Shima: U-u-um...you'll have to read the next chapter to find out! But it's okay! I'm posting it now as a gift! Two chapters at once, hooray!**

**Alba: ...Fine.**

**Shima: Hey, lovelies, leave me a review, okay~? It makes my day to hear what you think! You don't even need an account on this site to do so, so anons are also welcome! But NO FLAMES. I did warn you what this story contains, so I don't want to hear anything about how horrible I am or that I'm messed up in the head or something. Keep your hate to yourselves!**

**Alba: You're not messed up in the head...you're just anime crazy...**

**Shima: I know! People need to get their facts straight!**

**Well, until next time, everyone! Love ya all!**


	2. Disappearing Without A Trace

**Author's Note: Chapter 2 right away, like I promised! SEE, Alba? I told you I wouldn't leave you hanging for too long.**

**Alba: Yeah, whatever...**

**Shima: Warning time!**

_**WARNING WARNING WARNING: **_**This fanfic WILL make you cry. You will scream. You will hate my guts. You will throw bricks and rocks and tables and whatever else is convenient to you. This is NOT for the lighthearted. I may have to bump it up to an M rating if things get too bad. I AM WARNING YOU. You will not be happy with me. This story starts out nice but it only gets worse. It never, EVER gets better. Nope. SO! It contains dark themes like suicide, death, depression, ANGST ANGST ANGST, torture, and even more fun stuff. So, if that's not your cuppa tea, and if you hate seeing your favorite characters spiral into insanity, I suggest you turn back now, because I may end up scarring you for life, and I don't want to be responsible for that. DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU. 'Kay? :)**

**It's just here to remind you what you're getting into.**

**Alba: I'm scared...**

**Shima: GOOD! You should be! I don't have that much to say this time around, except, REVIEW, guys! It's kinda like an early Xmas gift for me! I'd really appreciate it! But no flames, okay? Those aren't nice. Alrighty, Alba-kun, disclaimer?**

**Alba: No! Where's Ros? Make him do it!**

**Shima: -rolls eyes- Ugh, fine! ROOSSSS!**

**Ros: What?**

**Shima: Do the disclaimer, pretty please.**

**Ros: -sighs- Shima doesn't own Senyuu...**

**Shima: If I did, Ros and Alba would've been a couple since the first chapter.**

**Alba: 0\\\\\0 Wh-wh-WHAT?!**

**Ros: ...Heh.**

**Shima: Let's get this show on the road! ROLL THE CHAPPY!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 2<p>

Disappearing Without A Trace

Alba rushed towards that special intersection the next day, a piece of toast in his mouth. Of course he'd overslept! Just his luck.

He reached the intersection not too much later, panting heavily. It was a special place to him, at least in the mornings. He always had conflicting feelings about it—in the morning, it was a good place to go, because that's where he'd meet up with Ros everyday, but in the evening, he disliked it because that's where he'd always say goodbye. It was strange, to say the least.

"Ros, I'm sorry I'm late, did I keep you waiting too lo—" He stopped when he realized that the crimson-eyed teen was nowhere to be found.

Alba tried to ignore the feeling of his heart dropping to the pit of his stomach. Well, of course he wouldn't be here. Alba did sleep in late, after all.

Fighting off the sense of dread he'd been feeling since the night before, Alba started off towards school.

_I guess he must've gotten tired of waiting for me,_ he thought, stepping along. _I'll have to apologize to him when I see him..._

With a grunt he picked up his pace, his feet clapping against the sidewalk. Hopefully he'd make it in time before first period.

* * *

><p>"He isn't here?"<p>

Rchi shook her head, frowning. "I didn't see him come in this morning."

Alba gained a frown of his own. Worry gnawed at him. "I-I see...maybe he's sick? He was acting kinda weird yesterday..."

Rchi tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Now that you mention it, he was a little off. Before he left school he gave me a stuffed animal and told me to look out for you."

Alba looked at her in surprise. "He did?"

"Yeah...I thought it was a little strange..."

"Are you guys talking about Ros?"

The pair looked up when Foyfoy came sauntering over. "He gave me some weird dating tips yesterday, clapped me on the back, and left. Did you guys notice him being wacky too?"

"So it isn't just us..." Alba mused. He pulled out his phone. "Maybe we should try texting him."

Rchi nodded. "Okay. Maybe you were right, and he is sick."

Alba typed out a quick message and clicked send.

**Me:** Hey, where are you? Are you okay?

_Message failed to send._

"Huh?" Alba murmured. "Failed to send?"

Foyfoy leaned over his shoulder, lips pursed. "Try again."

Alba shrugged and clicked the resend button. Again, the same message from before popped up: "Message failed to send."

"It's not working," Alba whined. "Why isn't it working?"

"Is something wrong with his phone?" Foyfoy asked.

Alba shook his head. "No, not that I know of."

"And your phone?"

"Perfectly fine last time I checked..."

Rchi peered over at the screen. "Maybe try calling instead?"

"Alright, might as well give it a shot." He quickly changed apps and found Ros' number before clicking the call button. He held it up to his ear, waiting. It rang once...twice...three times, four...

"_We are sorry. The number you are trying to reach no longer exists. We apologize for the inconvenience._"

Alba's face drained of all color.

"Did he answer?" Rchi asked, gazing up at him.

Foyfoy noticed his expression and frowned worriedly. "Alba? You okay?"

Rchi realized what was going on too, and she started rubbing Alba's back in a comforting manner. "Alba-san?"

"Th...there's something wrong," he choked. "I-it says his number no longer exists. Why? It worked just fine when I texted him a few days ago, so why is this...happening n-now?"

"Let me see," Foyfoy demanded, snatching his phone away. He redialed Ros' number and waited while Rchi patted a pale Alba's back.

"I'm sure he's fine, Alba. Maybe he got a new number?"

"He wouldn't do that without telling me!" Alba cried, shaking. "Where is he? Is he home? I want to go see him..."

"Alba-san, please," Rchi pleaded. "You're overreacting. I'm sure everything's just fine. Why don't we go stop by Ros-san's house after school and pay him a visit?"

Alba visibly relaxed at this. He nodded slowly. "...Okay."

Foyfoy walked back over to them, shaking his head. "Yeah, something must be wrong with his phone. I'm thinking he got a new number or something."

"That's just what I was telling Alba-san," Rchi said with a smile.

The three of them jumped when the classroom door opened and the teacher walked in.

"Good morning, class. Please take your seats."

Everyone sat down, chatting quietly. Alba looked to his left, frowning. It was weird not having Ros there.

"Excuse me, sensei?" He raised his hand.

She arched an eyebrow at him. "Yes, Fruhling-kun?"

"Um, I was wondering if you know where Ros is? I mean, he's not answering his phone, so...d-did he, uh, call in sick today?"

The teacher stared at him for a few moments, looking highly uncomfortable. Alba felt a rush of panic overtake him. Just what was going on?

"O-oh...well, actually...I received a message yesterday regarding his absence..." She straightened her glasses with a small sigh. "It seems that he's, um...moved away."

Alba froze.

_What...?_

* * *

><p><em>Message failed to send.<em>

"No!"

_Message failed to send._

"Why, _why...?_"

"_We are sorry. The number you are trying to reach no longer exists. We apologize for the inconvenience._"

"_Dammit...!_"

"_We are sorry. The number you are trying to reach no longer exists. We apologize for th—_"

Alba slammed his phone down on the table. The screen cracked in two, but he didn't care. He buried his head in his arms and let out a quiet cry of anger.

"Why is this happening...?"

_"I'm sorry, Fruhling-kun. But he no longer attends this school."_

_"C-can't you contact him for me?! Please! I just need to talk to him!"_

_"I'm afraid he's left no way of getting in touch with him. I'm very sorry..."_

_"No...no, that can't...that can't be..."_

This couldn't be happening.

_"Alba-san..."_

_"Are you okay?"_

_"I heard about your friend."_

_"Did Ros really leave?"_

_"Wow...so, he's really gone, then..."_

_"What should we do?"_

_"He's not answering us..."_

_"Alba-san, Alba-san..."_

_"Alba?"_

_"Hey, Alba!"_

_"Are you okay?"_

_"Do you need to go to the nurse?"_

_"He's not answering..."_

_"Alba..."_

_"Alba-san, please..."_

_"Al—"_

_"Hero?"_

Alba shot up from his position, tears rolling down his cheeks.

He stared at the clock on the wall, unmoving.

_Why? Why is this happening to me?_

Why?

_Ros...Ros, Ros, Ros...where are you? Why did you leave so suddenly? Why didn't you say goodbye?_

_Why did you leave me, Ros?_


	3. Message Sent

**Author's Note: -sobbing hysterically-**

**Alba: Uh...you okay, Shima?**

**Shima: P-p-p-people are so NIIIICEEE!**

**Alba: …**

**Shima: Oh my GOSHNESS, you guys! Your reviews were so lovely and beautiful and they made me cry. I'm so glad to have so much support already so early! THANK YOU SO MUCH~!**

**Alba: Ohh. That's what you were crying about.**

**Shima: I shall now respond to your reviews!**

**loverofallanime: OMIGOSH HEEEEEY! You reviewed before I could even get the second chapter up, haha! What, were you waiting for me to post something? XD It's been too long~ I'm glad that you still think of me sometimes! And since I'm so impatient, I decided to post a day early. That and everyone's reviews motivated me!**

**SEE, you guys? The more reviews I get, the more impatient I'll be to post new chapters, so I might end up posting a day or two early! :D So the more you review, the happier I'll be, and the faster you'll get chapters! Anyway, moving on...**

**kotoko-kurosaki: Aww, thanks! I love you too, I greatly appreciate the review~ And yes, you're right, this fic will be full of feels. For sure. SHHH Albatross is **_**everyone's **_**OTP. And hey don't worry about your English, sounds fine to me! Please be sure to give more feedback so I know how I'm doing in making your heart explode. ^_^**

**Ros: Sadist.**

**Shima: LOOK WHO'S TALKING!**

**Alba: She has a point...**

**Guest-chan: Did the warnings give everything away? XD Ahh, I'm glad I was able to make the story have such a feeling! Thanks for leaving such a kind review! I hope to hear from you again! :)**

**Ali-chan: Sorry, but he's never comin' back. Nah, just joking! I'm not gonna spoil anything, you'll just have to wait and see! Thank you! Haha, you'll probably want to stab me by the end of this. More is coming your way! I hope you'll give me more feedback in the future!**

**Alright, now that that's overwith, presenting a new chapter! This is probably one of my favorite chapters in the entire story, since it was so much fun to write! And I got so impatient for Tuesday so I decided to post a day early. I just couldn't wait any longer to see you guys' reactions! Okay, disclaimer, Alba?**

**Alba: Shima doesn't own Senyuu!**

**Ros: Roll the chappy!**

**Shima: HEY, WAIT! I'm not done yet!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 3<p>

Message Sent

The next few months passed slowly, almost painfully. Alba seemed almost empty now, his eyes having lost their lively glow, his conversations straight and to the point, his interactions with friends limited. He withdrew into himself, choosing not to talk to anyone, see anyone. It seemed as if he was becoming the old Ros that everyone had once known, the recluse, the anti-social teen.

They didn't know why he was acting this way. It hadn't been the first time somebody they knew had moved away or graduated or left them in some other manner. They couldn't understand it.

Rchi could, though. She knew, she knew how close Alba was to Ros. She saw everything that happened between them, knew about the hidden emotions and tightly bottled feelings they kept inside. She knew Alba liked Ros. No, maybe even more than liked him, maybe Alba even loved him. It was easy to see that Alba was suffering from major heartbreak. It would be hard enough if Ros had told him upfront that he was leaving, but, no—he'd left without a word, and this made her very angry. She wished there was some way to show her old friend how much Alba was suffering without him. She wished that Ros had told Alba he was leaving, so at least he could have time to prepare and steel himself for the loneliness he was going to experience. But now it was like a tsunami, something he couldn't stop, couldn't fight against, no matter how hard he tried. He'd told her one day, when he was slightly more stable, more clear-headed: "It's weird, like...there's this huge hole in my heart now. I can't stand walking home. Not without him. Just looking there, at the place where he used to be...it...it hurts, Rchi."

She felt horrible, she really did. But she didn't know what to do. She didn't know how to get him out of this rut. His friends tried to help: Foyfoy, Ares, Hime, Janua, Sanejima, Teuffel. But nothing they did made any difference. No, it just seemed like they only helped in making things worse.

It was the same routine. Wake up, eat breakfast, walk to school, ignore everyone and everything that reminded him of Ros, walk home, try to call him, text him, give up, do homework, shower, eat dinner, try to call him again, give up again, and then cry himself to sleep.

He hated it, really. But he himself wasn't sure what to do. What could he do? He was depressed. He didn't know where to go, who to talk to. Rchi was always there for him, but there was only so much she could do. He was alone. Alone, without Ros. Without his best friend. Without the person he cherished most in the world...

_Message failed to send._

"..."

_Message failed to send._

"..."

_Message failed to send._

"..."

_"We are sorry. The number you are trying to reach no longer exists. We apologize for the inconvenience."_

"..."

_"We are sorry. The number you are trying to reach no longer exists. We apologize for the inconvenience."_

"..."

No more. Bedtime again.

Alba curled up under the covers, holding his favorite stuffed animal close. He was surprised to learn that tears wouldn't come this night, as they usually did. So he just sighed and lapsed into a couple of dry sobs before drifting off to sleep.

_Ros...Ros...come back...please..._

_I need you. Please..._

_Come back to me._

* * *

><p><em>Message failed to send.<em>

"..."

_Message failed to send._

"..."

_Message—_

**Ros:** Whaaaaat?

Alba screamed and fell over in his chair.

He lay there on the floor, dazed.

No, this couldn't be happening.

He was dreaming.

He _had_ to be.

It had been months. Almost five months since Ros had left, five months Alba had had to walk home by himself, five months that he'd tried to text him and had received no reply.

It just wasn't possible!

...Was it?

Alba stared at his phone screen for a good three minutes before he realized that Ros was probably waiting on a response, so he hurriedly typed one in.

**Me:** Wait.

**Me:** Are you seriously here?

He waited.

**Ros:** What do u mean by that, hero? Ur weird

Alba stood up, straightened out his chair.

And then he screamed again.

He started dancing around his room, holding his phone close to his chest, joyful tears sliding down his face. He was so happy. So unbelievably happy. Ros was here...well, not _here,_ but he answered his phone, _finally._

_He's back...I can talk to him again..._

**Me:** What the heck?! Where did you go?! Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?! You IDIOT!

**Ros:** How dare u yell at me like that, hero? This is exactly y I didn't want 2 tell u

**Me:** I'm sorry.

**Ros:** That's better. And I'm not telling u where I went. I don't want u stalking me!

**Me:** I WOULDN'T DO THAT!

**Ros:** Hahaha, it's been so long since I've gotten 2 hear u freak out

**Ros:** I kinda missed it

**Me:** Yeah, well.

**Me:** I missed you, too.

**Ros:** Ewww, gross. I didn't say I missed u, hero. Ur always taking things the wrong way.

**Me:** YOU JERK!

**Ros:** C? I missed that, not u. Get ur facts straight

**Me: **I can't believe you...

**Ros:** So how is everyone? Have FF and Hime gotten together yet?

**Me:** No. Ares is working on it, though.

**Ros:** Lol sounds like her

Alba smiled, wiping away tears.

**Me:** Why didn't you tell me?

He waited. Ros didn't respond for a few minutes.

Then,

**Ros:** I didn't want u 2 get upset and get your gross tears on me

**Me:** UGH! Come on! Seriously, though.

Another few minutes of waiting.

**Ros:** I didn't want u 2 get depressed

**Ros:** Ur not as fun 2 tease when ur all mopey

Alba laughed quietly.

_So, that's the best I'm getting out of you, huh?_

**Me:** Alright...I'm still mad, though.

**Me: **It's been really tough without you.

**Ros:** Wow ur such a wimp hero

**Ros:** What, u can't even walk 2 school without me?

**Me:** :( I CAN TOO, thank you very much!

**Ros:** Cute emoticon. It suits u

**Me:** SHUT UP

**Ros:** Fine if u say so

**Me:** NO WAIT

**Me:** Don't you DARE put your phone away on me!

**Ros:** Lol hero yr u so clingy? Do u miss me that much?

Alba buried his head in his hands and moaned, cheeks a brilliant red.

_Well, he's not here to see my reaction. Or kick me. Or punch me. So..._

**Me:** Actually, yes. I do miss you.

He waited for a while, smiling.

_He doesn't know what to say._

**Ros:** Hmm

**Ros:** I have 2 admit it's weird not having u around

Alba grinned, his heart beginning to race.

**Me:** By the way, what happened with your phone? I couldn't text or call you for a while...

**Ros:** Oh that's easy. I blocked ur number!

**Me: **WHAT WHY?!

**Ros:** I didn't want u bombarding me with texts like u r now

**Ros: **Seriously I'm gonna run out of texts pretty soon

**Me:** Don't you have unlimited data though?

**Ros:** Dammit I thought u would've forgotten

**Me: **SO YOU DO WANT TO STOP TALKING TO ME!

**Ros:** Hahahaha there u go again hero

**Me:** I can't stand you sometimes. Honestly.

**Ros:** So wait y are u still texting me then?

**Me:** Whatever. That's not important.

**Ros: **Ahh hero I gtg

Alba frowned.

**Me:** No! Why?

**Ros:** Sorry I have some things I gotta do

**Me:** Wait don't block me again!

**Ros: **I won't don't worry

**Ros:** I'm comin back 2 Japan eventually 2 get some stuff I left behind so we'll c each other soon

Alba's heart fluttered. He spun around in his chair a few times, squealing.

**Me:** Wait really? When?

**Ros:** A few days I think

Alba leaped out of his chair.

_Yes!_

**Me:** Seriously? That's great! We can all hang out together again!

**Ros:** We'll c

**Ros: **I can only stay 4 a day so it's gonna b a short visit, but yeah sure. But don't tell anybody about it, I want it to b a surprise. And if I wake up 2 find that I have like 70 text messages from u I'm gonna b pissed

**Me:** Haha I wouldn't go that far!

**Ros:** Alright I really gtg bye Alba

Alba flopped down into his futon, positively beaming. He was smiling so hard he was surprised his face hadn't started to hurt.

_Ros...Ros is coming back to Japan! To see me! I can't believe it!_

For the first time in a while, it seemed as if things were looking up at last. And while Alba snuggled into sleep, clutching his phone to his chest, he thought that nothing could ruin the moment of happiness he'd finally found in his five months of dreary sadness.

But he was wrong.

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: OHHHH SHI<strong>**—**

**Alba: You left it on a cliffhanger, dammit!**

**Shima: Haha! You'll have to wait until Christmas to find out what happens! And, as my Christmas gift to you, my lovely readers, I'll be posting two chapters at once! Yaaaay! But this is the last time I'll do such a thing. Just sayin'. Oh, and Alba? The majority of my chapters end on cliffhangers, just so you know.**

**Alba: DAMMIT WHY?!**

**Shima: For suspense! And to hook in more readers, of course!**

**Did you guys notice that this chapter was actually quite lighthearted? It's a rarity for this story, so enjoy it while you can. There's only a few chapters that are like this, some that are neutral, and most are depressing and heart-wrenching. So, yep!**

**Please leave me a review telling me what you thought! Sorry that not much happened this time, but the chapters coming on Christmas are some of the biggest and most important in the entire story, so please look forward to that! -bows-**

**See you all next time! **


	4. One Day More

**Author's Note: MERRRRRY CHRISTMAS! -throws confetti- C'mere, you two! Gimme a hug! -hugs Alba and Ros-**

**Alba: Haha! Merry Christmas, Shima!**

**Ros: ...Yeah.**

**Shima: Merry Christmas indeed! And, as I promised, two shiny new chapters for you~! -throws more confetti- Thanks for all the follows/favs/reviews, guys! Now, lemme respond real quick:**

**loverofallanime: Thank you! Oh I see! That's actually really funny. What a coincidence, right? XD There's always a bad side...mweeheehee...just wait and see!**

**Please be sure to leave me more reviews, you wonderful people you~ I look forward to seeing what you think!**

**These next couple chapters are on the less serious side, but then everything goes downhill from there. -raises eyebrows- You'll just have to wait and see what happens to our heroes...Sorry they're so short, but you got two chapters in one day, so there's a nice bonus!**

**Guys guess WHAT? I know this doesn't apply to you at all, but I got a crapton of manga for Xmas! And a WII U! -screams loudly- AHHH I just wanna go to Gamestop and buy Mario Kart 8 and Smash Bros 4 and Sonic Boom right now. But all the stores are closed so I'll havta wait till tomorrow. Sigh.**

**Oh, here's another Xmas gift for you, some Albatross fanart made by me here: shimasteam2112**

**.deviantart.**

**com/**

**art/Merry-Christmas-from-Albatross-502547566**** Just erase the spaces, okay?**

**Hope ya'll like that. Does it make up for the horrible things I'm going to put you through? :D**

**Okay, without further ado,**

**I own Senyuu.**

**...NAH, just kidding! Not even close -cries-**

**Let's begin, shall we?**

**Ros: Roll the chappy.**

**Alba: And begin!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<p>

One Day More

"Alba, dear! Time for breakfast!"

Alba sprang up out of bed that bright morning. It was Wednesday, which meant that Ros would be returning in only two days.

_Two more days, _Alba thought excitedly as he pulled on his school uniform. _Two more days, and then I'll be able to see him again._

He raced down the stairs, messenger bag slung over his shoulder, and wandered into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Mom!" He greeted with a smile. Alba's mother, a very simple woman, turned and blinked at him in surprise.

"Good morning, dear. You seem to be in a good mood today...why's that?" It seemed like her little boy had been very gloomy for the past few months. She'd heard the news that one of his friends moved away, and ever since then, he'd been so down. She was glad to see that he was much happier than usual.

Alba simply smiled at her. "It's a secret," he told her giddily, quickly finishing his breakfast.

Alba's mother watched in complete astonishment as her son ran out the door, humming to himself. A small grin settled on her face.

_I'm glad he's doing better,_ she thought before returning to her work.

* * *

><p>Alba walked into the classroom that morning, beaming. "Good morning, everyone!" He exclaimed.<p>

Rchi looked up in surprise, jaw dropping at the sight of the normally sullen Alba, who was now humming a tune as he sat down and got out several notebooks to prepare for class.

"Alba...san?" She called out tentatively.

Teuffel raised his head from the book he was reading, face gaining an expression of pleasant shock.

"Hi, Rchi-chan!" Alba grinned at her.

Rchi slowly walked over to his desk, still unable to believe what she was seeing. "You seem...different. But in a good way, I mean! Um...what happened?"

Alba chuckled, eyes bright and determined. "It's a secret~ Maybe I'll tell you later."

Rchi stared at him for a moment before she finally smiled back at him. "Alright. I'm just glad to see that you're doing so well!"

Alba giggled and turned back to his desk before pulling out his phone and scrolling through the text messages from the night before.

Teuffel watched him from a distance, a somewhat thawed expression on his face.

_He's doing better...oh, I'm so glad._

It was so nice to see that Alba had returned the person he used to be before..._he_...left. At the thought of him, Teuffel wrinkled his nose in distaste. He didn't particularly hate Ros, but he didn't like him, either. He was the cause of all of Alba's pain...Teuffel could never forgive him for that.

The truth was, Teuffel had been watching Alba for a long time. He really liked him, for some reason. The boy's light brown hair and sparkling eyes always caught his attention. Teuffel admired his strength and determination to see things through, his kindness and pure intentions towards everything around him, his endless optimism and good heart. It had been a while since he'd seen that Alba, due to Ros' disappearance, and now that the old Alba—the _real_ Alba—had returned, he couldn't be happier.

He wanted to reach out to him, to tell him his feelings, but he wasn't sure how. Teuffel had always been a shy person, and speaking to new people always made him nervous. Even though people like Ares and Hime reached out to him (that and Ares practically _forced_ him to become friends with her) he still had a hard time doing so himself.

He liked Alba...no, he really, _really_ liked him. But how could he convey that to him when he couldn't even speak properly around him?

He wanted to replace Ros. He wanted to be the one to make Alba forget about him. He wanted Alba to pay attention to _him,_ not the guy who couldn't even stay to support Alba. But he didn't know how...

How could he steal the heart of a person whose heart had already been stolen?

* * *

><p>Alba skipped down the pathway to home, phone clutched in his grip. He'd texted Ros at lunch time, and the conversation went something like this:<p>

**Me:** Hey!

**Ros:** Oh, hero. I was wondering when u were gonna start annoying me again

**Me:** HEY!

**Me:** Why are you so mean? I only said hi!

**Ros:** I can almost imagine u doing it.

**Ros:** So unmanly and hero-like, heh heh

**Me:** ;(

**Ros:** Don't be sad, hero. U can always fall down the stairs at school!

**Me:** YOU SADIST!

**Ros:** Lol

**Ros:** So what did u want anyway?

**Me:** Nothing. Just wanted to say hi.

**Me:** You're coming on Friday, right?

**Ros:** Yup

**Ros:** I'll b there around lunchtime

**Me:** ^_^ Okay

**Ros:** Whoa hero chill

**Ros:** Ur getting way 2 excited over this, it's kinda creepy.

**Me:** :p Whatever! I can feel however I want to feel!

**Ros:** Whoa, isn't that a line from that 1 shoujo manga? Wow hero, I didn't know u were into that stuff! How disgusting!

**Me:** What shoujo manga? I don't even read that kind of stuff!

**Ros:** Suuuuuree. But when I get there on Friday I'll look under ur mattress and find hordes of shoujo manga! Omg, r u a closet otaku hero?

**Me: **NO DAMMIT, I'M NOT!

**Ros:** Oooh ur cussing now? That's kinda hot

**Me:** 0\\\0 WHAT?!

**Ros: **Pfft ur so easy 2 tease hero.

**Me: **Meanie!

**Ros:** Ah I gtg again, class is starting soon

**Me: **Oh, me too...text you later tonight?

**Ros: **Ew don't make it sound like we're dating! And no I've got plans

**Ros:** Just text me Friday

**Me:** :-/ Okay

**Ros:** What, u can't even survive without me 4 a day? Pathetic.

**Me:** What?! I can too! Fine, just watch me! I won't text you until Friday!

**Ros:** It's a deal. No backing out now!

**Me:** AHH!

**Me:** YOU TRICKED ME!

**Ros:** That was the whole point duh

**Ros:** Bell's ringing, gtg

**Me:** Fine, bye.

**Me:** See you Friday?

**Ros:** Yep Friday

Even though he'd been tricked into not texting Ros for a day, he didn't mind. He could handle it just fine!

_One more day..._he thought, trembling with excitement. _Just one more day...!_

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: DAWWW, Teuffel's got a cruuuush!<strong>

**Teuffel: …**

**Alba: -blushing-**

**Ros: -glaring at Teuffel with a passion-**

**Shima: Ros...are you JEALOUS?**

**Alba: 0\\\0 A-are you—**

**Ros: -punches him-**

**Alba: OUCH!**

**Shima: That wasn't very nice.**

**Ros: Don't make such an embarrassed face, Hero. It's disgusting.**

**Alba: -moaning in pain-**

**Teuffel: ! Are you okay, Alba?**

**Ros: …(I swear to god if you even THINK about touching him I will—)**

**Shima: Hahaha! Well, until next time, then!**


	5. Apple Tree of Memory

**Author's Note: And we're back with Chapter 5! Hooray!**

**Alba: Let's get this overwith.**

**Shima: Don't sound so dreadful. It's CHRISTMAS! "There will be no sad faces on Christmas." Take from Jim Carrey's example, yeah?**

**Ros: Let's see how much more you can make Hero suffer!**

**Shima: That's the spirit, Rossy!**

**Alba: NO! I don't want to suffer!**

**Ros: It'll be your Christmas gift to me.**

**Shima: You two are so cute...eheh!**

**Ros: What was that?**

**Shima: NOTHING! So I don't own Senyuu and ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS MORE REVIEWS~ so yeah! New chapter okay here we go...**

**Alba: -smirks- Oh, how the tables have turned against you!**

**Shima: This chapter is short, sorry, but you'll have to deal with it! Roll the chappy!**

**Alba: HEY! Don't ignore me!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 5<p>

Apple Tree of Memory

Alba wasn't sure how he managed to last through that Thursday. The anticipation of seeing Ros the next day was nearly killing him. That and he couldn't even text Ros because of the deal he'd made. He knew that he could always just forget about it and text Ros anyway, but he didn't want to prove to Ros that he was weak and really _couldn't_ survive a day without him.

So he forced himself to wait it out. It was a struggle, especially getting through school, but he managed. And as soon as he'd gotten all of his chores and homework done for the night, he went straight to sleep.

Which didn't help much because he couldn't really sleep, anyway.

Finally, Friday arrived. Everyone was excited for that day, but Alba was excited for it for completely different reasons. He raced off to school right after breakfast, giving his mom a hasty goodbye, who smiled at his antics.

Alba was jumpy all morning long, gaining him some questioning glances from his friends, but he knew he'd have to keep his promise and not tell them that Ros was coming until he met up with him first.

Alba almost started screaming in excitement by the time lunch rolled around. When Rchi asked him if he wanted to join her for lunch, he simply shook his head and said, "Sorry, I've got plans today!"

Giggling madly to himself, he descended the staircase, almost tripping along the way. He didn't want to make Ros' prediction about that come true, so he slightly slowed his pace until he reached the bottom, and then he was rushing again.

Teuffel watched him from afar, curiously raising an eyebrow. For some reason, it seemed as if Alba was even more joyful today than any other day. He then realized that Alba wasn't joining Rchi and the rest of their friends for lunch.

_Might as well go see what he's up to,_ the teen thought before beginning to follow him.

* * *

><p>Alba arrived at the apple tree on the edge of the school grounds, panting. This was a very special place to him, because...<p>

It was the place where he and Ros had first met.

He could recall the details of their meeting so clearly in his mind.

_Alba stared up at the enormous tree, awed by its size and beauty. He gently traced his fingers along the worn trunk, smiling as the breeze played with his hair._

_It was the start of a brand new school year. Alba had finally made it into highschool, and he was more than excited to start the year off by meeting new friends and forming relationships. He'd already met a young girl named Rchi, who seemed really nice._

_"Pretty, isn't it?" A voice called out from behind him._

_Turning, Alba came face-to-face with another teenage boy, and his breath immediately got caught in his throat._

_The boy was tall and strong-looking, with spiky black hair and the most mesmerizing crimson eyes Alba had ever seen. He was looking at him with a slightly amused expression on his face, holding on to his backpack strap with one hand._

_Maybe it was love at first sight, Alba couldn't be sure. But he knew, he knew that this boy was special._

_"Hey," the boy called out again, raising an eyebrow. "You in there?"_

_Alba jumped, a blush rising to his cheeks for being caught staring. "Um, yes, sorry, hi!"_

_The other boy chuckled. "What are you doing out here? You know that class is gonna start soon, right?"_

_Alba squeaked, looking around in alarm. "O-oh, really? Um, I was just...looking at the apple tree. It's the biggest one I've ever seen..."_

_The boy looked up at it, eyes glimmering with pain for a second. "...Yeah, it is."_

_Alba watched him, confused. "S-so, um..."_

_"Say, what's your name?" The other boy cut him off._

_The brunette fidgeted in his spot for a moment before he replied, "It's, uh, it's Alba. My name's Alba."_

_The crimson-eyes teen crossed his arms and smirked. "Alba, huh? That almost sounds like a hero's name."_

_"A...a hero's name?" Alba asked in surprise._

_"Yeah, you know, like those heroes in all the popular shows on TV nowadays." He shot him a mischievous glance, "So, Hero, do you watch that kind of stuff? You seem like the type. Maybe you want to be just like them?"_

_Alba's mouth dropped in shock. How...how _rude!_ "Wh-what?! What are you talking about? I do _not!_"_

_The boy tutted and shook his head. "Denial is the first step to acceptance, you know."_

_Alba fumed. "Oh, yeah?! Well, how do I know that _you_ don't want to be a hero like them?!"_

_Suddenly, the black-haired teen shot forward like a bullet, twisting a well-aimed punch into his stomach. Alba wheezed and fell over from the impact, curling in on himself from the pain._

_The boy straightened himself out, gaining a bored expression. "Don't make false accusations, Hero. That'll only get you into trouble!"_

_Alba glanced up at him, tears in his eyes. "Wha...what is your...problem?"_

_The boy looked down at him for a moment and then he offered him a hand. Cautiously, Alba stared at it before finally deciding to take it. He was immediately swung off his feet when the other teen pulled him up so fast he almost stumbled again._

_He found himself being steadied by strong hands, and then there were a pair of crimson eyes boring into his._

_"The name's Ros," Ros said, grinning. Alba felt his breath catch in his throat again. "Nice to meet you, Hero."_

It had been almost a year and a half since that day. Alba soon learned that his newfound friend was sarcastic, rude, and extremely sadistic, especially when it came to Alba himself. But Alba was smart, and he could see that, beneath the surface, Ros was actually a very compassionate person who cared a lot about others. Alba didn't dare bring that up aloud, though, or he knew he'd receive a kick to the knees or a punch to the gut.

And here he found himself again, standing beneath their precious apple tree, heart pounding from nerves and excitement to see Ros again.

What would they do together, he wondered? There was so many things he longed to tell him, wanted to show him...

He glanced down at his phone, took a deep breath, and texted:

**Me:** I'm at our apple tree...are you here yet?

He stood there in silence for what seemed like a long time. Finally, after about ten minutes of waiting, he finally received a reply.

**Ros:** Behind u

Alba smiled, took a shuddering breath, and turned around.

"Ro—''

And his blood turned to ice.

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: Shit just got real, folks.<strong>

**Alba: DAMMIT I HATE YOU!**

**Ros: All of this shouting isn't good for you, Hero. You might lose your voice!**

**Alba: What? What is it?! Is he a gangster or a mafia boss or something now?!**

**Shima: -giggles insanely- You'll have to wait until Sunday to find out!**

**Alba: NOOOOO!**

**Shima: Maybe if I get a lot of awesome comments I'll update a day early~**

**Alba: -stares towards imaginary audience- Review. NOW. -eye turns red- ****_Seriously._**

**Ros: H-Hero's so cool like that...**

**Alba: 0\\\\0 E-eh?**

**Ros: Ah, he's lost his coolness.**

**Alba: AGH!**

**Shima: What will become of our favorite Hero screwup Alba? What happened to Ros? Is Teuffel a stalker? Where is my candy? I want to read more manga.**

**Alba: ! So off topic...**

**Ros: -winks seductively- See you all next time.**

**Alba: 0\\\\\0 Wh-whoa...**

**Shima: -snickers and inwardly fangirls-**


	6. Demon Behind the Mask

**Author's Note: Hello, everyone~! How's your day been so far? I have to warn you, I'm about to ruin it. :)**

**Alba: What have you done...?**

**Shima: You'll see...anyway, thanks to all of my wonderful reviewers! I thought you'd forgotten about me! I was happy to see you all leave comments! Thank you ;w; Now to respond!**

**Ali-chan: Haha, thank you! Sorry, but cliffhangers are a must! And I have a lot of them! Please enjoy this chapter as well!**

**kotoko-kurosaki: Ahhh! I thought you'd forgotten about me! Glad to see you've been keeping up! :D That's alright, as long as I know you're still reading ^_^ You'll have to read this chapter to find out...I hope to hear from you again!**

**loverofallanime: That's alright! Merry Christmas to you, too! This chapter will decide everything!**

**-cackles evilly- MWAHAHAHAHA! You guys will hate me soooo much by the end of this chapter!**

**Alba: _Don't sound so proud of yourself!_**

**Shima: Now, this is important.**

_**WARNING WARNING WARNING:**_** This chapter contains harsh language. SO, if you can't stand that, then turn back now. What are you still doing here if you can't even tolerate bad words? The language isn't even the worst part! Yeesh!**

**This is where everything goes sour. Like, really, really bad. Just warning you. Get tissues. Or maybe a piece of wood to smash into bits. You'll either be really pissed or really depressed. Or both.**

**Alba: Oh my god...what the hell did you do to me?!**

**Shima: Alba, sweetheart, I want you to know that I love and cherish you with all of my heart. I am truly sorry.**

**Alba: If you're sorry then why did you do it?!**

**Ros: Shima doesn't own Senyuu.**

**Alba: Where did you come from?!**

**Shima: Roll the chappy!**

**Alba: Wait, no! I'm scared!**

**Ros: Don't worry, Hero. I'll hold you.**

**Alba: G-GYAAAAH!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 6<p>

Demon Behind the Mask

_What...?_

"Heya, Alba-kun," the figure standing in front of him said, smiling. "Good to see ya again!"

Alba stared, unresponsive, unable to believe what was going on.

Just what the hell was happening here?

"Oh?" The teen said, tilting his head to the side. "Ya seem so surprised. I guess I did too good of a job impersonating Ros-san, then! Eheheheh!"

Alba opened and closed his mouth a few times before he managed to gather the courage to speak. "Wh...E-Elf-san? B-but I thought...didn't you graduate last year?"

Elf November was a tall, lanky teen with tan skin and spiky black hair, completely different to Ros' own style. He was dressed in his usual clothing: a tanktop and shorts. He'd been a troublesome senior at Alba's school, but luckily Alba only had to deal with him for a year before he went off to college.

Elf looked about lazily, but his black eyes somehow managed to pierce Alba straight through to his core. What Alba didn't understand, though, was why Elf was there and Ros wasn't. Wait, did he just say something about impersonating...?

Before Alba could make the connection, Elf chuckled. "I sure did! But, eh, I was feeling mighty bored, so when I heard that Ros-san moved away and deleted his number, I hacked into the cellphone database and stole it, see?" He held up his cellphone, which had a bright green case. "So now Ros-san's old number is my new number! I figured I'd text ya and tease ya a bit, but ya took everything so seriously! It was kinda cute, actually. So then I figured I'd play along for a bit. I'm surprised ya fell for it so easily! I've only talked to Ros-san a few times, but I guess it's not that hard to act like him, hmm?"

Alba began to tremble violently. So...it was all a lie? It had actually been Elf texting him all this time...?

It had been Elf who had gotten his hopes up, brought back what little joy he used to have, made him feel like the happiest person in the world, and not Ros...?

"You...you..." Alba's entire body shook as a hot, red rage washed over him. "You_ bastard!_"

Elf giggled quietly. "Whoa, no need to get so angry, yeah? I was only playin', yer the one to blame for falling for it so easily." His eyes narrowed to slits. "Ya shouldn't take it out on me, because, in reality, it's yer fault."

"How _dare_ you?!" Alba shouted, voice cracking. "How could you do something like this?! Playing around with people's emotions?! You're...you're absolutely _sick!_"

Elf's eyes lit up. "Oooh, I didn't know ya could be so intimidating, Alba-kun! I have to say, ya look really charming like that..."

"Shut the hell up! What is _wrong_ with you?! I can't believe you'd _do_ something like this!" He was being really loud, but he didn't care. All he was seeing was red. Irritation. Anger. Hostility. Wrath. Outrage. Fury. These emotions were his core, his very being.

"Oh, yes...how wonderful...yer face..." Elf licked is lips. "I quite like it."

"You _bastard!_" Alba screamed._ "I'll kill you!"_

He charged forward in a blind rage, another ferocious scream tearing out from his throat. He couldn't describe what he wanted to do to this guy. No matter what, he just wanted it to end in a broken, crying, beaten Elf, bloody and bruised—

_No!_

Alba stopped short, gasping. Elf caught him before he could topple over.

Tears began to slide down his cheeks. No...what was wrong with him? Why would he ever think such horrible things? He wasn't the type of person to wish death, not even pain, upon another!

_How...how _could_ I...?_

"It's gone," Elf whispered into his ear. "Yer rage. It's all gone now...it was so beautiful..."

Alba began to tremble as another wave of fresh new emotions washed over him.

Terror. Horror. Fright. Dread. Panic.

Fear.

"Ah, but...look at ya now...yer expression...it's...it's..." Elf's eyes widened, and he almost looked insane. "P-perfect...absolutely..."

Alba squealed as the older teen suddenly grabbed his face and crushed their lips together.

He cried out in surprise, trying to break free, but Elf was too strong.

No, no! This wasn't what he wanted! He didn't want his first kiss to be stolen from some freak!

He started crying again, desperately struggling to get away.

_Somebody, help me!_

Elf finally released him, and he stumbled back, gasping. He opened his mouth to scream, to cry out for help, but Elf was already upon him, clamping his hand over Alba's mouth before he could let out a sound.

"Now, now," Elf soothed, stroking his cheek with his other hand, "let's not do somethin' rash, okay?"

Alba's entire body was shaking now, and he honestly wasn't sure how he was still standing up.

Elf's eyes softened. "Be a good boy and take a nap. When ya wake up, everything will be aaaallll better, I promise."

Alba yelped when something connected with the back of his skull, and then everything went black.

Elf scooped up the limp boy into his arms, gazing down at his young face.

"I sure didn't expect to find such a perfect little morsel just by textin' a couple people to mess around." He hummed cheerfully to himself as he began to walk away from the apple tree. "How I didn't notice ya sooner is beyond me, Alba-kun. But now yer all mine, and I'm never, _ever_ gonna let you go again~! Who needs Ros when you have me, right?"

He walked out of the school grounds, formulating plans in his head.

Teuffel emerged from behind the apple tree, legs quaking with fear.

_Oh, no..._he thought, unsure of what to do. _A-Alba's in trouble...!_

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: Shit just got real. Again.<strong>

…

**Oh, yeah, I had to escape to another dimension so I wouldn't have to face Alba and Ros' wrath. They'll be calmer by the next chapter, I'm sure. But for now, I'd rather not have my head chopped off, eehee 0w0**

**So, what a turn of events! You guys didn't expect THAT, huh? Elf's an evil little sonnuva bitch, isn't he?**

**You know what I'm gonna say, though. It only gets worse from here! But, hey, Teuffel noticed what was going on. Maybe he'll figure somethin' out? I don't know~**

**Please leave a review telling me what you thought! But no flames, okay?**

**Alright, awesome, love you all.**

**Next chapter's even worse than this one.**

**Do you want to stop reading it yet?**

**See you all next time!**


	7. Losing Himself

**Author's Note: HAPPY NEW YEAR! -throws confetti again- I can hardly believe 2014 is almost over! It went by so fast ;w;**

**Anyway, glad to see you all here! I'm honestly surprised I didn't get more hate messages because of the last chapter. But, ah, I'll probably get some more for this chapter, since it is one of the worst in the entire story.**

**Alba: -glaring full of hatred-**

**Shima: Alba's still pissed at me, so...**

**Ros: Hero didn't take his torture very well.**

**Shima: (Neither did you.) HA! You thought THAT was torture? Oh, no, dear Ros, THIS is the chapter with the torture. And so...**

_**WARNING WARNING WARNING:**_** This chapter contains mentions of torture and inflicting harm upon other people. If you can't stand that stuff, _why are you still here?_ Go away! I don't want to be responsible for scarring you for life! Just in case, I'm going to tell you when the torture begins and ends, so you can skip it if you want. 'Kay?**

**Now for reviews!**

**Loverofallanime: I know, right!? I'm so unpredictable. :3 Poor Alba's gonna get it this chapter...sigh...will he be okay? Who knows~ Well, here's more!**

**Please leave me a review, guys. I'd really appreciate it ^_^**

**Alright, shall we get going? This chapter is somewhat longer than the others, by the way. I'm also thinking about posting another chapter at midnight tonight...it **_**is**_** a holiday, after all. And special occasions like holidays usually get extra chapters! Well, that's up to you guys, I guess. So tell me if you want me to do that or not. Okay, Ros?**

**Ros: Shima doesn't own Senyuu.**

**Shima: That's a lie, folks! (No, it's actually right. Sigh.) Well, here we go!**

**Ros: Hero, are you okay?**

**Alba: -shaking- N-nnn...**

**Shima: You're gonna want to hold on to him. Yosh, roll the chappy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 7<p>

Losing Himself

When Alba came to, he immediately started freaking out.

Wherever he was, it was dark. There was duct tape over his mouth, and he found that his wrists and ankles were tied together. Tears started forming in his eyes again, and he began to cry, lashing out in an attempt to escape.

_No...why is this happening? Where am I? Why am I tied up? Wh...whe..._

He froze.

_Elf...it has to be Elf. He...he must've knocked me out and taken me here..._he paused, looking around, trying to see something, _anything,_ in the darkness. _Wherever _here_ is..._

He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm himself down.

_Okay, Alba. Let's not have a panic attack. Let's think about this rationally...what would Ros do in this situation?_

He almost smiled thinking about it.

_Knowing him, he'd glare at his kidnapper, and as soon as he got the chance, he'd break free and beat them so hard that they wouldn't be able to see straight for days..._

He sighed. _But there's no way I can possibly pull that off._ He sat there for a while longer, pondering. _Well, I obviously can't pull a Ros, so what would I, Alba, the hero, do in this situation?_

He stared into the darkness for a long time.

_Wait it out and see what happens?_

He shook his head back and forth. _No, no! Think of something better than that, you idiot...!_

Just then, he heard a strange creaking sound. Eyes narrowing, Alba knew that it had to be Elf who was coming to see him.

He flinched away from the sudden light that flooded his vision. Elf stood there, not too far away, a candle in his hand.

"Oh, Alba-kun! Yer awake!" He cheered, smiling.

Alba sent him a glare that was so full of hatred, he was surprised that the older teen didn't seem fazed by it.

"I like that look on yer face," Elf commented, coming to sit beside him. "It's nice, but the one where ya look all hopeless and defeated is even better. I'll havta bring out that one soon."

The brunette fought off a sudden wave of fear that was threatening to wash over him. _No, I can't be scared. I can do this. Just think about Ros. Ros wouldn't be scared by this at all._

He took a moment to steel himself. Yes, if he thought about Ros, it would give him courage. He was going to be just fine. If he just kept thinking about Ros, he could find the strength to never give up.

Elf looked at him for a long time, and then he smiled. "So, Alba-kun, are ya gonna let me take off that duct tape?"

Alba growled lowly at him. _I'll scream._

Elf met his hostility with absolute indifference. "Don't be that way. How can I kiss ya properly if you have duct tape over yer mouth?"

Alba gave him a look of disgust. _Who'd ever want to kiss _you?

Elf's eyes narrowed. "Don't be this way, Alba-kun. Or do ya want me to use force?"

Alba rolled his eyes._ Oh, please. Like you can force me to do anything._

"I wouldn't sass me, if I were ya. I was the one that tied ya up." Elf suggested quietly.

Alba snarled at him to the best of his ability. _Can't you just let me go already?_

Elf shook his head back and forth. "Fine. I didn't think ya'd be so stubborn, so I didn't want to have to show ya this. But, here," and he pulled a knife out of his pocket.

Alba stiffened immediately, his eyes growing large. Things would be much different now that Elf had brought a weapon into play.

Elf giggled. "Will ya be a good boy now?"

Alba stared at the knife, breath shallow. What else could he do? If he just let Elf have his way, he wouldn't get hurt...

Would he?

"I'm gonna take off that duct tape now," Elf stated. He gently peeled it off of Alba's face, who winced at the pain.

"There. Better!" He smiled. Alba opened his mouth. "Now, Alba-kun, ya'd better not scream, or my friend will have to give ya a warning," he cut him off, gesturing to the knife.

Alba closed his mouth, frowning. Then, he opened it again, but this time to speak. "Why are you doing this?" He whispered harshly. His throat was dry and his lips were chapped. Everything was sore and achy, but he tried not to let it show.

Elf leaned forward and kissed him swiftly. Alba jumped back, gritting his teeth.

Elf gave him a pleasant grin. "'Cause, I think yer adorable," he said.

Alba felt a blush creeping up to his ears, and he begged for it to go away. He should not be flattered from getting compliments from such a horrible person!

"I like yer expressions, especially when yer scared," Elf commented. "I didn't realize it before, but I like ya quite a lot. I knew I felt somethin' when I was textin' ya as Ros-san."

Alba backed himself up, squeaking when he hit the wall behind him. He was trapped.

"Now, show me more of those expressions," Elf whispered. "If ya play along and do what I say, I'll let ya go."

He crawled forward on his hands and knees. Alba squeezed his eyes shut and begged, begged to any god that would listen, that somebody would realize he was missing from school and try to look for him.

He whimpered when he felt Elf kiss him again, more harshly than the last time. He didn't want to count how many seconds passed before Elf moved away to catch his breath.

"Ahh, yes," Elf breathed. "Perfect. Ya look so submissive and scared of me. I love it." He glanced down at the knife on the floor, biting his lip.

More. He needed to see more...

What better way than to make him hurt?

"Sorry, Alba-kun," Elf said, not sounding apologetic at all. "I know I told ya I wouldn't use it unless ya start misbehaving, but I can't think of a better way to make you scream than this."

Alba began to suck in breaths harshly, eyes wide with terror. He pressed himself further against the wall, almost as if he were trying to merge into it and disappear.

_Ros...Ros..._

Why? He couldn't find the courage to fight back.

_Help me..._

This couldn't be happening. Elf was going to...he was going to...

"N-n-no, please," he begged, tears making their way down his face again. He was terrified. "P-please don't. I-I-I'll do anything you s-say, just don't hurt me!"

_Ros...Ros! Ros, _help me!

Elf started laughing. "Oh, yes! How wonderful! Oh, yes, look at yer face, it's perfect! So scared and afraid..." He came back, pinning Alba against the wall. "Show me more..._more._"

_((Torture starts here))_

He pressed the edge of the knife into Alba's cheek. Alba cried out as hot, searing pain engulfed him.

_Ros...! Please, it hurts!_

_Help me! _Help me!

"Yes! Yes! More! _Amazing!_" Elf cackled madly. Alba began to sob loudly, shaking against the wall.

_No more...someone, help...please..._

"Here..." Elf sang, slicing his collarbone. Alba screamed. "And here, too..." He cut his shoulder. "And there and there and _theeerrreee~_"

His chest, his wrists, his legs, his arms, his stomach, his ankles. It felt like his entire body was on fire, like it was consuming all of him, even his soul. He screamed and screamed for what seemed like forever, throat going dry, voice cracking and breaking.

"Yer screams...they sound so lovely..." Elf chuckled, almost insanely. "Aha...ahahaha haha_ hahahaha!_"

_((Torture ends here))_

Hours passed. Alba screamed until he couldn't make a sound anymore. Eventually all that came out of his mouth were silent sobs and breathless shrieks. He slumped against the wall, broken, empty, gone. There was nothing left of him anymore. Elf had taken his spirit and crushed it beyond repair.

"Hmm. Yer kinda boring me now," Elf muttered after a while. He stood up, the bloody knife in his hand. "I'll come back when yer feeling better, okay~? So for now, be patient and wait for me!" And with that, he skipped out of the room, leaving a confused boy in his wake.

* * *

><p>Everything hurt. It was painful, all around. He embraced the pain, though. The pain reminded him that he was still alive, still human.<p>

Ah, wait. Who was he, again...? He couldn't remember. Wasn't there someone he was waiting to see, to meet? Who was it...?

R...Ro...Ros. It was Ros, right? Who was Ros? He was somebody important, right?

He tried to remember. He had...black hair...and he was kind...and he was always with him, always...

So why wasn't he there now?

_He must be coming for me,_ he thought, staring ahead blankly. _He's on his way. He'll save me. I know it._

_My Ros..._

* * *

><p><strong>Alba: -sobbing-<strong>

**Ros: Hero...Hero...-hugs him-**

**Shima: ...I'm sorry, Alba...**

**Ros: -sighs- He'll get over it.**

**Shima: Right...well, I'm actually feeling kinda depressed now because of this chapter...it makes you want to stab Elf with a fork, doesn't it?**

**Elf: I'm not the bad guy...**

**Shima: You are in this story, so shhh. Oh, by the way, guys, I used Elf's accent from the manga translation for this. I don't know if it's correct, but I used it anyways...**

**So, review, lovelies! And have a Happy New Year!**

**Ros: See you all next year.**


	8. Beautiful Delusions

**Author's Note: Heya, lovelies! Nice to see you again~! And HAPPY NEW YEAR, by the way! Holy jesus I can't believe I'll be graduating highschool in just a few months. That's just cray cray!**

**Alba: You're growing up!**

**Shima: Looks like somebody's feeling better. Sorry I had to put you through that torture, sweetheart.**

**Alba: It's okay...as long as you're sorry.**

**Shima: Of course (not)!**

**Alba: W-wait, what did you just—**

**Shima: Review time! Whoop!**

**Ali-chan: I figured you would. -insert troll face here- I know things seem bad, but...uh, I can't finish this sentence on a good note. XD Of course~ Thanks for leaving a review!**

**loverofallanime: Allow me to rub more salt into your wound! YIPPEE! Glad I was able to make you feel feely and chilly. Success! Don't worry, I didn't forget. There's a difference between forgetting and just being lazy. That and I wanted to wait and see if anyone else would review...I guess not, huh? Thanks, dear!**

**Thanks to you two for keeping me motivated. What's up, everyone else? Did you forget about me or are you just too lazy to review? Please, I want to know how others feel about this...don't let me and Alba down, alright? Speaking of Alba...**

_**WARNING:**_** Just a little one this time, this chapter involves a mental breakdown/meltdown/panic attack/whatever you'd like to call it, along with some minor language. If you're uncomfortable with that, uh, get out of here! Seriously why are you still reading? Okay, Alba, disclaimer?**

**Alba: Shima doesn't own Senyuu.**

**Shima: Yeah, 'cause if I did, we'd already be halfway into season 7. Seriously.**

**Hey, have you guys noticed that Alba's developed a bit of a Ros obsession? Well maybe that's the insanity talking, but I just noticed it.**

**Alba: I-I-I DO NOT HAVE A ROS OBSESSION!**

**Shima & Ros: Yes, you do.**

**Shima: Oh, hey, Ros. There you are! Can you start us off?**

**Ros: Roll the chappy.**

**Alba: I DON'T, I SWEAR!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 8<p>

Beautiful Delusions

The silence was deafening. He sat in the darkness for a long time—how long, he couldn't be sure, he stopped counting after second one thousand fifty-two—wondering, pondering, on who he was.

It took a while for it all to come back, but he remembered eventually.

He was Alba, the hero. He had lots of friends, like Rchi and Foyfoy and Ares. He was a sophomore in highschool. His mother was a wonderful woman, and his father was a brave adventurer who traveled the world. His favorite number was forty-five. He had brown hair and honey-colored eyes. He was fifteen. He was a little short for his age. He wasn't that strong. He was planning on taking kendo to help him get stronger.

He was in love with a boy named Ros.

But Ros wasn't there anymore. Ros left him five months ago, without a word. But then he started getting texts from Ros. But those texts weren't actually from Ros, they were from an evil person named Elf who kissed him and knocked him out and tied him up and sta—

Alba erupted into shivers. No, he wasn't going to think about that. He'd just gotten his sanity back, he didn't want to lose it again by remembering that horrible incident.

Think about something better. Ros. Ros is...

He loved Ros. He loved him a lot.

He couldn't really remember him that much. It'd been so long since he'd seen him. But he recalled a lot of the important things about him.

Ros was tall. Ros had black, spiky hair. Ros acted mean to him, but he was actually a really kind person. Ros was pale. Ros didn't really like talking to other people. But Ros always liked talking to him, to Alba.

Ros was—

Suddenly, the door to wherever he was being held creaked open. Alba immediately shuffled back, eyes wide. He opened his mouth to scream, but found that no sounds were coming out. Ah, right. Elf had taken away his voice. He wondered if he could get it back, somehow.

A silhouette appeared in front of him, but it wasn't the person he was expecting.

Whoever they were, they were tall, with black spiky hair and pale skin...

No, it _couldn't_ be—

"Oh my god, Alba," the person breathed. Alba stared back at them, speechless. The person came forward and wrapped him up in a tight embrace.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? I'm so sorry it took me so long to find you..." The figure whispered into his ear while cutting the ropes that bound his wrists and ankles.

Alba began to shake.

They pulled away, looking at him with an apprehensive expression. "...Alba?"

Alba's eyes filled up with tears. They slipped past his eyelashes and slid down his face and dampened his cheeks.

"Oh, Alba..." The boy murmured.

It was him. He'd come back. He found him.

It was him. It was him. It was—

"_Ros!_" Alba cried, launching forward and flinging his arms around Ros' neck. The teen stiffened immediately, but Alba didn't notice.

"Ros, oh, _Ros!_" Alba sobbed into his shoulder. "Y-you're here! You're really here!"

Ros slowly returned his hug. He seemed unsure. But why?

"Alba..."

"I knew you'd come for me..." Alba laughed breathlessly.

"Oh, god," he heard Ros moan, "what did that bastard do to you?"

"I waited for so long. I knew you'd find me. I just knew it. So even when that guy kept cutting me open, I thought of you and I knew you'd come to save me so I wasn't worried at all and I just closed my eyes and didn't pay attention to the pain because I knew you'd find me soon." Alba rambled, nuzzling his face into Ros' hair.

Ros began to shake against him. "Oh god, oh god," Ros whimpered, "what did he do to you? What did he do?"

Alba pulled away and looked at Ros' face curiously. "He only cut me up a little, but I'm fine 'cause you're here." He paused, frowning. "Why did you take so long, Ros? I waited for such a long time."

He watched as Ros started to cry. But why? Why was he crying?

"Th...that bastard," Ros wept. Tears kept falling down his face like a waterfall. "I-I'll kill him."

Kill...?

Kill. Kill. Kill.

No.

Somebody was going to get hurt again?

Alba backed away, vision blurring.

Ros wiped his eyes and looked at him, concerned. "Alba?"

"N...no," Alba gasped, his back hitting the wall. Elf was here. But why? Where was Ros?

Did he take Ros away?

Elf reached out for him. "Al—"

"_No!_" Alba screamed, slapping his hand away. "Don't touch me! Leave me alone! Where's Ros?! Where did you put him?! _Bring him back!_"

Elf looked alarmed. "Alba—"

"Don't hurt me!" Alba started crying again. "P-please don't hurt me! Give Ros back! I want Ros! I want—"

He started yelling at the top of his lungs when Elf hugged him.

"_Let me go!_" He shrieked, "Let me go! Ros! _Roooossss!_"

"Alba, Alba! It's okay! It's okay, I'm here!" The person said frantically into his ear. "It's me. I've got you. It's gonna be alright."

Alba slumped against him, trembling. Who was this person? It couldn't be Elf. Elf would be cutting him up by now. So it had to be...yes, it had to be...

"Ros," he sobbed. "R-Ros. Where did you go? I called out for you over and over and you didn't answer me. I waited and you didn't come. Why? Why didn't you help me?"

"Oh, Alba, Alba," Ros rocked him in his arms, sounding close to tears himself. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I—I wanted to find you, I did, but I just..."

"Ros," Alba pleaded quietly, "I want to go home. Please, take me home."

Ros sniffed and nodded against him. "O-okay. Okay. Let's go home."

Alba lifted his arms and Ros picked him up, cradling him to his chest. He drifted in and out of consciousness as Ros snuck out of the horrible place he'd been held captive in.

As Ros carried him down the street towards a large white building with a red cross on it, Alba caught a glimpse of his eyes in the light.

Had Ros' eyes always been black?

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: What's THIS? Ros has come back? Or HAS he? Who knows...<strong>

**Alba: Seriously Shima, you need to stop getting our hopes up!**

**Shima: -cackles- Whatever are you talking about, my dear Alba?**

**Ros: You're full of mysteries.**

**Shima: Haha! Alright, everyone, please leave a review telling me what you thought! And so...**

**-ahem-**

**(Announcer voice) Will Alba be alright? Was the person who rescued him really Ros? What will happen to the notorious Elf? How can things get any worse? Find out in the next chapter of...**

**Shadows Are Darker in the Light!**

**Until next time!**


	9. Playing Pretend

**Author's Note: Yes, yes, hello everyone! Sorry I didn't update yesterday, I've been so busy! But don't worry, I haven't forgotten about SADITL! I'll update as regularly as I can, promise!**

**This chapter is a LOT longer than the others I've already posted, so hopefully that'll be a treat for you! It's also pretty mellow compared to the others, as well. This is the point in the story where everything calms down for a bit...kinda like the calm before a storm. Does that scare you or what? Haha! I also have to give a quick warning:**

_**WARNING:**_ **This chapter has harsh language. That's...about it.**

**I'm actually really tired right now, so I don't have the energy to ramble about stuff. So I'll get straight to the point and then go take a nap...review time!**

**Keppaku: Oh, thank you so much! ^_^ I'm so glad you like this story! Haha, I just love being cruel to poor Alba. And if it's Elf? Well, you'll find out in this chapter! I'm glad you caught on to that, since that was what I was aiming for! And you seriously want me to torture Alba baby more than I already have? Oh, no! ;w;**

**Alba: Thanks but NO THANKS!**

**Shima: Hush, Al. It's true that Elf is seen as the big baddie in this story, but I didn't have anyone else to play the part. I wanted it to be someone who's comfortable with Alba in the actual series and who's viewed as a bad guy in it, as well, so I knew having it be Rchimedes the first or Dezember or even Juli would be too weird. So Elf it was! He's had many interactions with Alba, and I actually admit that I like their ''I hate you but not really'' relationship with each other. Elf has helped Alba in the past, and he's actually doing everything bad in the series for a good reason. **

**Sorry if that explanation was too long winded. Anyway, continuing on. Thanks for the reviews you guys have been leaving me! You know, I'm not asking for reviews just because, I genuinely want to know what you guys think of this story. This is my first attempt at writing something so sad and angsty, so I want to know how other people feel about it. I swear I'm not trying to come across as selfish or anything, like ''I want tons of people to review so I seem popular''. No, no, that's not it at all! I just want to get many different opinions about my writing, that's all~ So please tell me what you think of it so far, alright? I love you all!**

**Since Ros has kinda disappeared from the story until recently, he can do the disclaimer and start is off!**

**Ros: Shima doesn't own Senyuu. And roll the chappy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

Playing Pretend

Teuffel waited outside Alba's hospital room, in deep thought. So much had happened over the last few hours that he was having a hard time comprehending it all.

He'd followed that evil son of a bitch Elf to his apartment. Of course, Teuffel didn't dare follow him inside in fear of being caught. So he paced outside, trying to find another way to get in.

His plans were immediately interrupted the moment he heard Alba start screaming.

It felt as if every nerve in his body had frozen and turned to solid ice when that first shriek escaped the building. He almost began to hope it was just his imagination, but then he heard it again. And again and again and again and again. Over and over, Alba's screams pierced through his body, making him want to hurl. It was so painful to listen to.

Elf was hurting Alba. _His _Alba. He almost started crying himself. Alba sounded like he was in so much pain.

The obvious thing to do was to call the police. He knew that, but he also knew that Elf wasn't that dumb. Elf would be prepared for that sort of thing to happen. He'd either find some way to escape, or, even worse, kill Alba before the police found him in time. The chances of that happening were low, but Teuffel didn't want to take any unnecessary risks that could mean the death of the person he cared so much about. He hoped that somebody might hear the commotion and try to see what was going on, but Elf's apartment was located in an out-of-the-way place, so there weren't many people around. Not only that, but the building was surrounded by other shady places, since it was downtown, so the noise probably didn't concern other people too much since things like this occurred all the time around the area. So, his hopes for that plan were dashed, as well.

The only other option he had was to go in there and rescue Alba himself.

But, yet again, the risks were too high. What if Elf saw him coming and threatened to kill Alba if he tried to help him escape? Teuffel wasn't strong enough to fight off somebody like Elf, especially since he was a bigger and more well-built college student. Teuffel had his speed, sure, that was why he was on the track team freshman year, but he knew he'd be too afraid to pull it off.

He was a coward, and he hated it.

Eventually Alba's screams died away into nothing. Teuffel feared that Elf really had killed him, but he was reassured when Elf came out of the building, humming to himself.

"Alba-kun sure is a cutie. Well, I should go and get somethin' to eat before I come back to play with him some more~"

Teuffel almost went up and decked him in the face. _Almost._

Once Elf was gone, Teuffel broke into the building and ran all over the place for what seemed like hours until he found Alba locked away in the basement.

What he saw there almost made him burst into tears.

Alba was so broken. Cuts and gashes and bruises littered his body. His eyes were so empty and devoid of life. He looked like he hadn't seen the sun in weeks, though it'd only been a few hours since he was taken away.

Teuffel embraced him upon seeing him, and hurriedly released the boy from his bonds. He could feel Alba's blood soaking into his shirt while he held him.

But that wasn't even the worst part.

He felt as if his heart was being shattered into a million pieces when Alba started calling him Ros.

Out of all the people he could've gotten him confused with, he just _had_ to go and pick Ros. But of course it was him. Everything was his fault to begin with. If Ros hadn't moved away, Alba wouldn't have gotten all those fake text messages. He wouldn't have gotten kidnapped and beaten and whatever else Elf had done to him.

If Teuffel didn't hate him before, he completely despised him now.

But Alba was delirious. He was mangled and marred and highly unstable, so Teuffel knew he'd have to watch himself or the boy would snap, and then he'd _never _get him back.

So he played along. He pretended to be Ros, just for Alba. But he still couldn't help but break down and cry a little. What had Elf done to him to make him this way? What the hell did he do to break Alba so completely? It pissed him off. He wanted to find that bastard and inflict all the pain he'd caused Alba, but a thousand times worse. Oh, the pleasure he'd get by hearing that asshole scream in absolute agony...

This fury scared Alba badly. Teuffel hadn't meant to say something like that, at least, not in front of the brunette. So when Alba started screaming and crying for Ros, he assumed that role again, gathering him up into his arms and telling him everything would be okay.

Alba asked him to take him home. Teuffel agreed, but he knew he'd have to take the boy to the hospital first. If Alba came home in such a state, it'd probably give his mother a heart attack.

As soon as he got there, after Alba was rushed away to be taken care of, he called the police and informed them what happened. As he hung up the phone, he rubbed his temples.

_Good luck to them, _he thought, groaning. He was starting to get a headache._ It'll be hard to track down that asshole. Knowing my luck, he's probably halfway across the country by now._

And now there Teuffel was, sitting, waiting. He'd texted everyone he could, telling them that Alba was in the hospital. Foyfoy was on his way now, who was bringing Rchi, and Hime and Ares would be arriving soon, too. Sanejima and Janua were further away, but they were coming, as well.

Teuffel started to hope. No, he started to pray. He begged and pleaded with all his might that Alba would be okay —physically _and _mentally. He didn't know if his heart could take it if Alba called him Ros again.

But even if he did, and even if Teuffel would have to keep picking up the shattered pieces of his heart, in the end, he knew that if Alba still thought he was Ros, he'd play along anyway.

He was sick. He hated himself for thinking this way. He despised the fact that he actually enjoyed being Ros in that moment, even though it was so nice to have Alba rely on him and need him and want him to be there. Teuffel couldn't be that type of person, but Ros could. And since Ros was everything Alba wanted, and since Alba thought Teuffel was Ros, and since Alba was everything Teuffel ever wanted, he'd play the part. And he'd be disgusted with himself afterwards, for sinking so low, for getting such a sick satisfaction of playing pretend. But...he couldn't _not_ do it.

He raised his head when a nurse emerged from the room. She looked slightly unsettled.

He stood up quickly to confront her, ignoring his nervousness around people for a moment. "Excuse me, but is Alba alright?"

The nurse stopped and stared at him. "You're friends with that boy?"

Teuffel swallowed and nodded.

She sighed and adjusted the clipboard in her arms. "Whatever happened to him, he was cut up pretty bad. Some of the wounds will end up becoming scars. Other than that, he's all patched up...at least, physically."

Teuffel winced at her tone of voice. He knew what was coming, but he still wasn't sure how to brace himself for it.

The nurse continued. "His mental state, on the other hand...is highly unstable. He was ranting throughout his checkup, talking a lot about a boy named Ros..." She gazed down at him curiously. "Is that you?"

Teuffel shook his head. "No...but he thinks I'm Ros."

She blinked in surprise. "Huh? What do you mean? Please, explain."

Teuffel looked away, shuffling his feet. "Ros was...a very dear person to him who moved away half a year ago. Ever since then, he's been really depressed..." He paused, trying to gather himself before he broke down again. "I guess...whatever happened to him in there, he must've gotten me confused with Ros...so now he thinks I'm him..."

The nurse looked alarmed at this. "Oh, dear...this is much worse than we thought..."

Teuffel saw it coming, but that didn't mean it hurt any less to hear.

"I've been talking about this with the other nurses and doctors, and it seems that I'm correct."

Teuffel clenched his fists. "What...? What's wrong with him?"

She let out another long sigh. "It seems he's developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD for short. It occurs when someone experiences extreme cases of injury, death, or any other traumatic event. He's in a lot of shock due to what happened and, because of this, it seems he's gotten your identity confused with someone whom he longs to see again."

Teuffel stared down at the floor, nodding.

Her voice softened. "I'm so sorry to tell you this. He'll need to receive treatment until he recovers. Until then, can I be sure that you'll stay by his side and support him throughout all of it?"

Teuffel nodded again, tears forming in his eyes. "O-of course," he choked, "Of c-course I will."

She patted his head. "Thanks for bringing him to us before it got any worse." She started walking away, but not before she called, "Take good care of him, kiddo."

Teuffel rubbed his eyes and put on a determined face. Right. He needed to be strong. He needed to be strong because Alba couldn't be strong right now. And he'd continue to be strong until Alba was okay. He wouldn't break down and cry and lose himself until then.

So, with his face set, he slipped into Alba's room. Most of the doctors and nurses that had been ushered in there before were gone now. Alba sat on the bed, sucking on a lollipop. Teuffel bit his knuckles at the sight of him.

He looked much better than he did when Teuffel had found him, that's for sure. But he was still pretty beat up. Bandages and gauze covered all of the places where Elf had cut him, the gauze used for the deeper cuts, including the one on his cheek.

When Teuffel approached him, Alba's eyes settled on him and lit up. Teuffel held his breath in anticipation. From what he could see, they'd regained their normal glimmer, not the milky and distant glaze they'd had when he'd found him in the basement.

_Maybe...?_

"Ros!" Alba cried, sitting up straight.

Teuffel tried not to let his grimace show. Apparently Alba wasn't completely back to normal after all.

_No. You will not cry. You're not going to run away like that asshole. You're strong. You can do this. _He chanted this inside his head as he walked over to the brunette's bed.

"Uh...hi, Alba."

Alba smiled, a bright, beautiful one that had his nerves melting away. "I wanted to see you, but they said that they couldn't let anybody in until they were finished with my checkup. I'm glad you're here now!" He scooted over and threw an arm around Teuffel's neck.

"...I was scared...that you'd left me again..." He admitted quietly.

Teuffel sighed and hugged him back, enjoying the warmth of being in his favorite person's arms. "I wouldn't leave you, silly."

Alba giggled into his neck before he pulled away, twirling the lollipop in his hand. "So, you're staying here, then? You're not leaving?"

Teuffel shook his head. "No, Alba...I'm staying right here."

Alba positively beamed at this. It slowly faded away into a suspicious look. "Hey, call me like you usually do. Hearing you call me Alba all the time sounds so weird now!"

Teuffel blinked at him while he tried to rack his brains for the name. What did Ros always call him? Ugh, he couldn't remember. Was it...H...He...

"Okay, Hero." Ah, that was it! Hero! Why Hero, though? No offense to Alba, but he wasn't exactly the heroic type...

"That's better!" Alba cheered, laughing. Teuffel watched him do so and smiled fondly. Even though Alba wasn't completely back to his usual self, he'd definitely gotten better in the last hour or so.

"So, where did you go? Why did you leave? What made you came back?" Alba asked him questions, one after the other. "I...I was so lonely without you, you know..."

Teuffel winced as he was put on the spot. He'd have to think quickly. What would Ros say in this situation? Luckily for him, he'd had plenty of experience watching people because he'd much rather do that than interact with them, so he'd studied everyone around him when he could. He knew exactly what to say.

Now, the question here was, could he pull it off without sounding really stupid?

"Family matters," he responded. Wait, what? Family matters? Seriously? That was the best he could come up with? "I-I came back to visit everyone for a few days..." Upon Alba's look of panic he added, "B-but, since you got beaten up, Hero, I guess I have no choice but to stay here and make sure you don't...die." Whoa. It almost felt as if he'd just uttered poison. Did Ros really talk this way?

And all the time, too! Teuffel hated being so teasing to Alba. It annoyed him.

Apparently whatever he said worked, because Alba seemed satisfied with his answer. "Okay. But you'd better tell your family that you're staying here a lot longer than you planned!" He tilted his head to the side, eyes growing large. "That's weird. I've never heard you talk about your family before. What are they like?"

Teuffel glanced down at his pocket when his phone buzzed. As he gave Alba a half-hearted response, he read through his text messages.

**Foyfoy: **We're here. Where r u guys?

**Me:** Upstairs, second room to the left. Just try not to be too surprised and play along, okay?

**Foyfoy:** Jesus u make it sound like he's in a coma or something

Teuffel let out a humorless laugh.

**Me:** Not quite. You'll see.

"Rossss? Who are you texting?" Alba asked him, trying to lean over his shoulder and see.

"Ah...uh...none of your business, Hero." He stated gruffly, resisting the urge to smile when Alba stuck his tongue out at him.

Hey, this was actually kinda fun!

A knock sounded at the door. "Alba-saaaaan?"

"Hey, it's Rchi-chan! Come in!" Alba called out.

Foyfoy looked astonished from the other side of the door. "Weird. He sounds fine. But Teuffel made it sound like he'd gone insane."

Rchi shrugged. "Let's just see how he's doing!" And with that, they opened the door.

What they saw surprised them so badly that they became speechless. Alba, on the bed, covered in bandages and wrapped in gauze. Despite his rough exterior, he looked delighted to see them.

"Rchi-chan! Oh, and Foyfoy-kun!" Alba exclaimed joyfully.

"A-Alba-san...what _happened _to you?!" Rchi cried, hands over her mouth.

Alba chuckled, slightly embarrassed. "Um, well, I kinda got caught in a dangerous situation and got cut up a little. But I'm okay now, honest!" His smile grew even broader. "And look who came to save me! Can you believe it?"

Rchi looked over at Teuffel, who was now sweating. "Teuffel-san? Yes, we knew that already..."

Teuffel knew it was coming. He started fidgeting with his hands out of nervousness.

Alba regarded her with a thoroughly confused stare. "Huh? Teuffel-san? No, that's Ros, silly!" Rchi gaped at him in shock as he continued, "He came all the way here to see me! And he saved me! Isn't that great?"

Foyfoy frowned. "Alba, that's not—" He was cut off when Teuffel made a hand slicing motion across his neck, warning him not to continue. Rchi saw this too and gave him a look that clearly said, "We'll talk about this later" to which Teuffel nodded and clapped his hands together in a "Please play along" motion.

"O-oh, uh...wow, Ros! Good to see you, man!" Foyfoy laughed, a little too loudly.

Rchi, being the smart girl she was, employed her acting skills to the max when she ran forward and hugged Teuffel's waist, crying, "Oh, Ros-san! We've all missed you so much! It's so good to see you again!"

Teuffel smiled and patted her head awkwardly. "Oh, uh...hey, Rchi. N-nice to see you guys too..."

"Now we're all together again," Alba murmured, eyes wavering.

Teuffel's eyes softened. "Al—er, Hero..."

Rchi looked surprised at this, but she quickly shook it off. "...Yeah! Now we can be a trio again!"

Foyfoy scratched the back of his neck, feeling like the fourth wheel in a situation such as this one. "Uh, hey, Te—Ros. Mind if I speak to you outside for a minute?"

Rchi caught on to this. "Oh, yes! I'd like to speak with you, as well..."

Teuffel nodded, almost too enthusiastically. "Oh, yeah, sure! I mean, uh, if you want."

They gathered up outside the door. Once Foyfoy and Rchi left, Alba called out to Teuffel before he could escape the strange atmosphere, as well.

"R-Ros?"

Teuffel turned and almost started squealing at the sight. Alba was looking away, a bashful blush on his cheeks.

_Damn, he's just too cute...!_

"You...you'll come right back...won't you?" He said so quietly that Teuffel almost didn't catch it.

Teuffel smiled at him. "Of course, Hero." Alba looked at him weirdly, so he sputtered and added, "If I don't you'll, uh, probably be really lonely without me, right? You wimp."

Alba's cheeks turned pink and he fisted the hospital sheets in his hands. "Hey!"

Teuffel chuckled, a genuine one, before giving him a wave and leaving the room.

Alba relaxed, slumping against the bedsheets. _Geez,_ he thought, blushing, _he still _loves_ to tease me..._

He stared up at the ceiling, furrowing his eyebrows. _But he seems different. Not that that's a bad thing, but...well, he must've been through a lot while he was gone...he's nicer to me now. _He smiled, his blush intensifying. _I...have to admit...I really like seeing this kind of Ros..._

And even though he was happy about it, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was still wrong.

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: HOH SHIT! Who saw <strong>_**that**_** coming?! It was actually Teuffel that rescued Alba! (Sorry to all of you who wanted Ros to come back. Not yet, not yet...his time will soon come...)**

**Alba: Now I've really gone insane...**

**Ros: Hero, you've taken your fetish with me way too far.**

**Alba: I DON'T HAVE A FETISH FOR YOU!**

**Shima: (Yes, you do.) Of course not, Alba dear.**

**Ros: (You totally do.) Sure, Hero.**

**Alba: Stop making fun of me! Dammit!**

**Shima: It's about time I signed off and took a nap! I'm so tired! -yawns- Have a great day, everyone! Please drop a review if you have the time!**

**Well, until next chapter! 'Bye!**


	10. Hospital Hijinks

**Author's Note: …**

**Alba: Where have you been?!**

**Shima: Uh...sorry, Alba, but...I kinda forgot about you guys...**

**Alba: HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?!**

**Shima: Don't blame me. When people don't review, I don't get reminded to update. So then I forget and don't do it until much later.**

**Reviews...**

**loverofallanime: Thanks for leaving me something, otherwise I probably wouldn't have thought to update until next month. -sighs- Is anyone even reading this anymore? Geez...well, anyway! That's alright! Yeeeeeep! Haha, I keep fooling everybody! You can NEVER have Ros! Mwahahaha!**

**It's alright, I won't let this get me down! I'll keep dishing out chapters even if people don't give a damn! Woo! -fist pumps-**

**Ros: Glad to see you have your confidence back.**

**Shima: Eheh. Thanks. Alright, continuing onward! So, this chapter is kinda filler and calm for the most part. Just preparing you for what is soon to come...heheh. This chappy was actually a lot of fun to write. We also get to see more into Teuffel's character! Sorry if I didn't nail his personality like I wanted to, but he's not a major character in the manga and it's hard for me to get a grasp on his personality...so if he seems OOC, please forgive me.**

**Also, I don't own Senyuu and I never will. Unfortunately.**

**'Kay, roll the chappy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 10<p>

Hospital Hijinks

"Alright, just what is going on here?" Rchi demanded, putting her hands on her hips.

"What's up with Alba thinking you're Ros?" Foyfoy jumped in before Teuffel could open his mouth.

"What happened to him?"

"Is he gonna stay like that?"

"Why is he—"

"Hold on, hold on!" Teuffel said, waving his hands around frantically. "Calm down and let me talk!"

They both gave him annoyed looks, but leaned back and waited for him to speak anyway.

Teuffel took a deep breath and sighed. "He got kidnapped."

Rchi's face paled. Foyfoy gawked at him.

"Wait, _what_?!"

Teuffel told them everything, starting with how he followed Alba to the apple tree during lunch, Alba's conversation with Elf, the kidnapping, Teuffel tracking them to Elf's apartment, the dilemma of being caught, Alba's screams, Elf leaving, his daring rescue, Alba's mental breakdown. They stared at him, wide-eyed, unable to believe what they were hearing. Teuffel had to assure them multiple times that it had actually happened.

Foyfoy slammed his fist into the wall, eyes pools of rage. "That _bastard,_" he snarled. Rchi didn't seem shocked at his outburst, for she looked quite murderous herself. "The next time I see him, I'm gonna rip his throat out."

"What a horrible thing to do," Rchi whispered harshly. "I hope he gets thrown into jail and stays there the rest of his life."

Teuffel ran a hand through his black locks, exhaling loudly through his nose. "For now, we just need to give Alba all the support he needs so maybe he'll go...back to..." The world started to sway back and forth in front of him.

Rchi grabbed his arm, alarmed. "Teuffel-san?!"

Teuffel steadied himself, rubbing his eyes. "Ah...sorry," he mumbled. "I'm just really tired. It's way past the time I usually go to sleep."

Foyfoy checked his phone and frowned. "Dude, it's only 7:38. Most people are still awake at this hour."

"Have you forgotten that I'm narcoleptic?" Teuffel asked, rolling his eyes.

Foyfoy blanked. "Uh..."

"It's when a person falls asleep a lot and is always really tired," Rchi explained quickly. "He probably goes to sleep early to help with the exhaustion."

"Oh. Sorry, man."

"It's fine...I've been dealing with it my whole life, so..." He glanced around. "Is there a vending machine around here? If I eat something sugary I think I'll be able to stay awake a little longer..."

"Oh, we saw one on the way up!" Rchi said. "Come on, I'll show you the way."

Foyfoy waved as they walked off. "I'll stay here and keep an eye on Alba."

Teuffel nodded. "Okay, thanks."

On their way down, Teuffel and Rchi bumped into some familiar people.

"Oh! There you guys are!"

The duo looked over to see Ares and Hime walking over to them.

"Where's Alba-san? Is he alright?" Hime asked, concerned.

"He's upstairs. Have Foyfoy explain everything to you," Teuffel said, trying to stay awake.

"E-eh?! Fo...you mean he's already here?" Hime squealed, cheeks already beginning to turn pink.

"Hey, you," Ares slapped his shoulder, "you'd better eat something or you'll pass out."

"We're on our way to do that right now," Rchi told her, smiling.

Ares nodded. "Right, then. We'll head on up."

As they walked off towards the stairway, Rchi and Teuffel resumed their walk to the vending machine.

"Say, Teuffel-san, Ares-san seemed to know a lot about your condition," Rchi spoke up quietly from beside him. He looked down at her, blinking rapidly.

"Hmm?"

"Ares-san was the first person to become friends with you, right? You two must be close." She commented casually.

"Uh...yeah, I guess we are." Teuffel shrugged.

Rchi smiled at him. "Could you see yourself dating her in the future?"

Teuffel gasped and tripped over his own feet in surprise. Rchi squeaked and hurried over to help him up from the floor.

"Oh, my, Teuffel-san! Are you alright?"

"Fine, 'm fine," he muttered, hurriedly standing back up.

He walked ahead briskly, eyes lighting up when he spotted the vending machines at the end of the hall.

Rchi caught up to him by the time he got there. Unfortunately, she wasn't willing to drop the subject so easily.

"Sooooo?" She pressed, watching as he chose a packet of Skittles from the machine.

With a sigh, Teuffel fetched the candy and ripped open the package. He'd have to answer her sooner or later.

"I...I don't like Ares that way, so no," he murmured. He popped a few Skittles into his mouth, chewing happily. _Yum._

"So who do you like, then?"

The conversation from almost a half a year ago came flooding back into his head.

_"So, Alba-san, who do _you_ like?"_

_"Wh-wha? I...I don't...I d-don't like anybody."_

That was when everything had been normal and whole and good, when nothing bad ever happened, except maybe Foyfoy's jaw getting broken by Hime's punch. How could things have changed so much in such a short time, he wondered? Now the world was all topsy-turvy and upside-down and backwards and nothing made any sense anymore.

How different would things be if Alba had answered Rchi's question properly that day? Would Ros not have left? Would Alba still be balancing on the edge of insanity, ready to take the plunge any second?

Maybe things would be different. Maybe, if Alba did confess, Ros would have stayed and things wouldn't be so screwed up. Teuffel's heart would be broken, yes, but that was certainly better than dealing with Alba in such a fragile and delicate state.

And, of course, Teuffel went and answered the same way Alba did, anyway.

"I-I don't like anybody."

Rchi lowered her eyes at him. "_Suuuree _you don't."

But, since she was such a sweet girl, she decided not to push him any further.

* * *

><p>By the time Rchi and Teuffel arrived back upstairs, everyone was already gathered. But instead of the usual lighthearted banter that would be tossed back and forth between them, they were all silent, dazed.<p>

Hime sat in a chair, her head in her arms. Ares stood next to her, leaning against the wall, in deep thought. Janua was staring down at his lap, a ball of nerves. Sanejima comforted him by rubbing his back in soothing motions. Foyfoy was the first one to notice they'd returned.

"Oh, there you guys are." At this statement, the tension shattered and everyone snapped out of their trances, looking up to greet them with halfhearted smiles and waves.

"Feeling better, sleepy-head?" Ares asked Teuffel, and he nodded.

"Yeah, thanks."

"Did you guys go in to see Alba-san yet?" Rchi asked them.

Hime shook her head. "The doctors got to him before we could. Besides, we wanted to wait until you got back."

Teuffel looked over at her, panicked. "D-doctors? Is he okay? What happened?"

"They're just checking up on him," Sanejima assured him, his voice a low rumble.

Janua looked over to the door. "Ah, speak of the devil."

The door opened, revealing an older doctor with graying hair. He perked up at the sight of them. "Oh, hello! Were you waiting to see Fruhling-san?"

"Yes," they all responded. He laughed at their enthusiasm.

"Alright then, go on in. We were just giving him his medicine."

They all waited until the doctor was gone before they all barged into the room, almost falling on top of each other. Of course, this scared poor Alba to death, who jumped back and shrieked in surprise.

"Oh, geez!" He sighed, placing a hand over his heart. "You guys nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry, Alba-san," Rchi giggled, straightening out her school uniform.

"Are you alright, kid?" Ares asked.

Alba blinked at her. Then, he gave her a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. A little sore, but fine."

The entire gang let out sighs of relief at this, making Alba laugh.

"What, you were that worried about me?" He giggled.

"Of course, Alba-kun! We're your friends, after all!" Janua stated, crossing his arms.

"As soon as we heard what happened, we rushed over," Hime added.

"A man doesn't need an excuse to attend to someone in need," Sanejima declared, puffing out his chest.

"We're always gonna have your back, Alba." Foyfoy grinned.

Alba stared at them for a long time. Then, his eyes started to water. He beamed at them, tears starting to trickle down his cheeks.

"Oh...e-everyone...th-thank you so much," he whimpered before he started sobbing.

Teuffel was at his side quickly, stroking his back. "Alba?"

Alba sniffed and wiped at his face. "O-oh, I'm fine. Th-thank you. I'm just really ha-happy." He looked up at Teuffel and smiled. "You called them here, didn't you, Ros?"

Hime frowned at him. "Ros?"

Ares elbowed her in the side. "Yes, that's _Ros, remember_? Have you forgotten him already, _Hime-chan_?"

"O-oh, right!" The blonde laughed awkwardly. "Ros-san, of course!"

Teuffel breathed out a sigh. _Good thing Ares caught on before it got worse._

Alba tugged on his sleeve. "Ros?"

"A-ah," he started. "Uh, yes, I did call them. But I didn't think any of them would show up to see a pathetic Hero." How he managed to pull that off he didn't even know.

"What?! You meanie!" Alba whined, lightly punched his arm.

"You want to go there, Hero?"

"Wh—no! No, I don't!"

"You're strange."

"_Heeeeey!_"

The rest of the group watched on, unsure if they should be amused or worried. Alba seemed perfectly normal, yes, but he still couldn't tell that Teuffel wasn't Ros at all.

Rchi bit her lip. _Will Alba-san ever go back to normal? And even if he tries to, will he be able to accept that he's been lying to himself all this time?_

_What if something even worse happens when he finds out that Teuffel-san isn't Ros-san...?_

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: That's all for now, folks! Until next time!<strong>

**...Maybe!**

**Alba: Wh-what's THAT supposed to mean?!**

**Shima: Uh...well...**

**Alba: _Shima!_**

**Shima: Okay thanks for reading love you all 'kay bye bye!**

**Alba: WAIT WAIT WAIT! This conversation is not over, you hear me?! NOT OVER!**


	11. Faker

**Author's Note: HAY LOOK I'M NOT DEAD—**

**-shot-**

**I am SO sorry, you guys! I know I promised I'd update soon, but I lied, I'm a liar, I'm horrible and you probably hate my guts and oh PLEASE forgive me...**

**Alba: Shima, what the hell happened to you?**

**Shima: Um, life got in the way? But I promise, I PROMISE I will not ditch this story, ever. Even if it takes me a months to write a new chapter, I will not leave it in the dust, I refuse. Nope.**

**Now, for quick reviews and then we can get started, yeah?**

**Kotoko-kurasaki: Hey, don't worry about being busy! I am too (obviously from my lack of updates)! Yes, I know Elf's not actually a bad person...god yes I ship him with Alf too XD Nani? You don't ship Teuffel and Ares? WHY? They're so cute together ;w; 'Cause, ya know, Teuf's the butler and Ares is the maid...they're perf for each other! But, hey, I never considered TeuffelXClare/Crea before, maybe I'll think about it! And yes, Clare is gonna show up. I couldn't have a Senyuu fic without him in there somewhere, haha! Oh, and...-punches Ros-**

**Ros: Ow! What the hell?**

**Shima: They asked me to! (Btw I love ya too thanks for reviewing :D)**

**celmiji: Haha your reviews made me laugh so hard XD If you hate me that much, it means I've done a good job! Don't hate Elf because of me, he's a good character, honest! He's just not so good in this story...Thanks for your feedback, hopefully you'll leave me a review soon?**

**Okay, moving on, let's get this started so people can stop wanting to stab me with forks, alrighty? Ros, disclaimer!**

**Ros: Shima doesn't own Senyuu.**

**Shima: Yuppers! Kay-o, let's begin~**

**Alba: Roll the chappy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 11<p>

Faker

After that, things seemed to return to normal, for the most part. When Alba arrived home from the hospital, his mother burst into tears and wouldn't let him go for ten minutes. Teuffel simply watched on in amusement as the boy struggled to escape from her grasp.

Then came the awkward introduction part.

Alba bid them goodnight and went up to his room to sleep. Teuffel remained in the doorway, eyes downcast.

Alba's mother turned to him with a smile. "So you're the boy I've heard so much about," she said. "Thank you for taking such good care of my Alba."

Teuffel winced. "Ah, yes...about that...I'm, uh...I'm not Ros." He looked into her eyes seriously. "My name is Teuffel."

Alba's mother stared at him. "Huh?"

He then proceeded to sit her down and explain everything. He tried to leave out all the gory details for her sake. Still, when he told her that Alba had developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and couldn't tell the difference between himself and Ros, it still broke her heart anyway.

"I don't know how long it'll take for him to go back to normal," he told her quietly. "I don't know if he ever will. But, for now, I'll play along until it's time to tell him the truth."

Alba's mother didn't reply, instead, she let out a quiet sob, dabbing at her face with a handkerchief.

"I'm really sorry about what happened to him, Mrs. Fruhling," he whispered. He clenched his hands together. "If only I'd...just been brave enough to go in there before anything bad happened..." Tears began to slide down his cheeks. "I-I'm such a coward. This is my fault. I'm so s-sorry..."

"Oh, no, sweetheart," the older woman shook her head, holding his hands in hers. "Don't blame yourself. If it wasn't for you, Alba would probably still be in there. You saved him. I can't thank you enough."

"M-Mrs. Fruhling..." Teuffel mumbled, wiping his eyes.

She let out a deep sigh. "I wish there was more I could do for him. He's...he's changed so much. He used to be such a happy child before his father left."

Teuffel sniffed and blinked at her. "Huh? What do you mean...?"

Mrs. Fruhling looked away, appearing melancholic. "His father left ten years ago to travel the world. He sends postcards sometimes, but..." She exhaled softly. "Alba just wasn't the same without his father around. He was his entire world. He'd always tell Alba stories about adventures and they'd go into the backyard to play hero all the time. To Alba, Midnight was his role model...but after he left, the light in Alba's eyes vanished. He got over it eventually, but he was never the same again."

Teuffel couldn't believe what he was hearing. So the Alba he knew now wasn't always like that? He'd never known this side of Alba before. It was hard to believe that the brunette wasn't always the cheerful and happy teen he knew today.

"He was very quiet and reserved all throughout elementary school and junior high. He had very low self-esteem. He'd get bullied a lot by the other children in his class. I didn't know what to do with him. He'd always be happy whenever his father sent a postcard, but after that he'd go back to the way he was before." She rested her head in the palm of her hand, reminiscing.

Teuffel fought the urge to cry again. He never knew how tough life actually was for Alba.

"It was very hard for him, growing up without a father. I thought things would continue to be that way, but then...he went into highschool."

She smiled. "And from there, things changed drastically."

_Mrs. Fruhling looked up in surprise when her son came crashing through the door, looking positively pissed._

_She raised an eyebrow as he passed her and threw his stuff onto the table, fuming._

_"Alba, dear? Is everything alright?" She asked, concerned._

_"No! No, it's not!" Alba responded, grinding his teeth._

_"What happened? Was your first day of school that bad?" She questioned, watching as he crossed his arms and pouted._

_"No, it was fine. But that damn Ros, he...!"_

_"Alba! Language!"_

_He blinked at her apologetically. "Sorry, Mom."_

_She sighed and leaned against the counter. "So what happened?"_

_Alba stuck out his lower lip and stared at the ground. "There's this guy named Ros, see? And he makes me so mad! He teases me all the time and he punches me for fun!"_

_Mrs. Fruhling gasped. "Oh, my."_

_Alba relaxed after this. "I met some really nice people, though. There's this girl named Rchi and she has pink hair. But unlike Ros, she's actually nice to me." His frown reappeared. "And you know the worst part? We live really close, so he walked home with me! And he made fun of me the entire time! It got me so mad!"_

_Mrs. Fruhling titled her head to the side, pondering. "Well, sweetie, it seems to me that this boy likes you."_

_Immediately, Alba's cheeks flushed. "W-_what_?!"_

_"Well he teases you and punches you, right? And that must mean he likes you quite a lot." She regarded him carefully. "And judging from your reaction, you must like him too. I mean, dear, you've never acted this way towards anyone who's made fun of you before. And you're not crying, so I'm guessing he didn't beat you to a pulp like the other bullies usually do, right?"_

_"M-Mom!" Alba yelped, clearly embarrassed._

_"Am I right?" She continued, smiling._

_"N-no! That's _so_ not true!" Alba answered, blushing fiercely. "Wh-whatever! I'm just...gonna go do my homework!" And with that, he stomped away._

_Mrs. Fruhling watched him go, giggling. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say he's acting like a teenage girl."_

"Things started to change after that," Mrs. Fruhling said. "Alba made friends, for the first time in a long time. I don't know what that Ros boy did, but thanks to him, Alba started regaining some of his confidence, and the light in his eyes came back. I'd never seen him so happy."

Teuffel wrung his hands in his lap, refusing to meet her gaze.

He knew it. He knew it all along. But to have it confirmed? Well, it hurt like hell, it did.

He'd always disliked Ros. Maybe because he was jealous of him. Maybe because he annoyed him. Or maybe because Ros was the reason behind Alba's happiness, and that's what Teuffel wanted to be.

To hear that Ros was the one who made Alba smile and laugh and be who he was now really stung. It wasn't fair. It wasn't. Because now he knew the truth.

He could never be Ros. He could never replace him, ever. Ros had a permanent place inside Alba's heart, and Teuffel couldn't take that place. He thought he could, once. But now he knew it was impossible.

Because Ros was Alba's reason to be happy. Ros brought back all of the joy that Alba had been missing, craving, for so long. And Teuffel couldn't do that. Only Ros could.

"Of course, that happiness didn't last for very long, because Ros moved away...huh? Teuffel, dear, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

Teuffel staggered to his feet. He couldn't be here. Not right now.

"I-I'm sorry, Mrs. Fruhling...I can't stay. I have to leave..." He mumbled, making his way over to the front door.

"Oh, I see...are you sure you're alright, dear?"

Teuffel was feeling lightheaded. Sleep. He needed to sleep. He was so tired...

Maybe he'd wake up tomorrow and find out it was all a nightmare.

"I...I'm fine. I need to go..." He opened the door and stepped outside, welcoming the cool air.

"Oh, alright...please stop by again soon, okay?"

He nodded. "Y...yes. Tell Alba I'll see him tomorrow..."

"Of course. Have a good night. And thank you for everything," she said sincerely.

Home. He needed to get home... "U-uh...yeah, sure...'bye."

And he ran off into the night.

* * *

><p>As soon as Teuffel got home, he went straight to bed. And maybe, <em>maybe<em> he cried himself to sleep—he couldn't be sure, though, since when he woke up the next day, the night before was all a blur in his mind. His narcolepsy tended to fuzz out his memories sometimes, especially in cases where he was extremely tired.

Teuffel arrived at Alba's door the next morning, seeing as it was a Saturday and the brunette would most likely search the entire town for him if he didn't visit right away. He fidgeted with nervousness, though he couldn't be sure as to why. He'd already gotten the hang of pretending to act like Ros, so what was his problem? Maybe the whole idea of him doing it still unnerved him.

It made sense, actually.

The door swung open, revealing Alba's sweet mother, hair tied back into a ponytail, eyes bright with a mixture of liveliness and worry.

"Oh, Teuffel! Good morning," she greeted, smiling at him. "Come on in. Alba's been ranting about you from the moment he woke up."

"Yeah, but not about _me_," Teuffel muttered as he stepped inside.

"What was that?"

"O-oh, it's nothing."

She sat him down on the couch before wandering off into the kitchen, saying that Alba would be down in just a moment. And this statement proved to be true when she called up the the teen with a, "Alba, honey? Teu..._Ros_ is here!"

Teuffel inwardly grimaced at her slip-up, hoping Alba wouldn't notice. All was forgotten when said boy came racing down the stairs, half-dressed and hair a complete mess.

Teuffel barely had time to respond before the teen had tackled him, squeezing his midsection so tightly that it made his breath whoosh out of his lungs.

"_Ros!_" Alba cried joyfully, grinning like the sun.

"H-Hero," Teuffel choked, tugging weakly on his arm, "get off...can't breathe..."

Alba immediately jumped back with something that sounded like a squeal. "O-oh! Sorry, sorry!"

Teuffel took a moment to catch his breath, and then his cheeks turned an abrupt shade of pink. Alba looked...adorable. His face was flushed with embarrassment, hazel eyes wide as the sky, bed head prominent by the several bangs that flopped onto his forehead, opposed to their normal slicked back style. He was dressed in a casual t-shirt and his pajama pants. Apparently, in his excitement to see "Ros", he'd forgotten he was still wearing them. Teuffel could practically feel his heart exploding from the cuteness. He couldn't stand it!

"I, um," Alba started, giggling. "I didn't think you'd be here so early..."

Teuffel blinked at him, mouth gaping.

...Oh, right. He wanted a response, didn't he?

"Well, I...didn't want to hear you complain if I was late, Hero."

Alba stuck out his lower lip teasingly at him, an amused glint in his eye. Then, the look faded away to be replaced by a somewhat concerned expression.

Teuffel gasped in surprise when he found himself in Alba's embrace again. Tingles shot up his spine as the brunette held him close, closer than he'd ever held him before.

"S-sorry," Alba whispered into his shoulder, "I, uh...I was just kinda afraid that, when I woke up, the entire thing would be just a dream and you wouldn't be here."

_I almost wish it was a dream,_ Teuffel thought with a sigh before he awkwardly patted the boy's head. "I told you I'm not leaving."

He heard Alba chuckle against him. "You're being shockingly honest."

Teuffel flushed a bit. "Yeah, well..." _Not really._

Alba finally pulled away, and Teuffel was torn between feeling relieved and disappointed. The boy shot him a nervous, shy smile.

"So, uh...wanna go do something?" He asked curiously.

Teuffel blinked. "Like what?"

"I-I don't know! You decide," Alba huffed, crossing his arms.

"Like, you mean...go out and see a movie...or something?" Teuffel wondered.

Alba paused, mulling this over, before he nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! I mean, if you want to."

Teuffel flushed a bit. Was Alba asking him on a...date? A date with Alba? Taking Alba on a date?

It was strange. It was something he'd dreamed of doing for the longest time, yet now that he was at that point he wasn't so sure. It probably related back to the fact that he'd be going out with the brunette not as himself, but as the person he pretended to be. The person he didn't really _want_ to be.

With a little shrug, he nodded. "Okay, sure." But of he course he agreed to it anyway, and then proceeded to mentally beat himself up over it afterward.

"G-great! I'll go get dressed!" Alba told him before rushing back upstairs in a flash.

He was done in minutes, returning downstairs with hair brushed back, clothes tidy, and covered in those awful bandages. Yet, he still managed to look so cute in Teuffel's eyes.

"Mom? Ros and I are gonna go see a movie!" Alba called into the kitchen.

"Okay, dear! Have fun and be safe! Look out for him, Ros!" She called back to the pair.

Alba turned to Teuffel, looking strangely content in contrast to recent events. "Ready?"

Teuffel nodded. "Yup. Let's go."

* * *

><p>After their movie (which was quite uneventful), Teuffel returned Alba home before going home himself, hoping that maybe Alba would snap out of the weird trance he seemed to be trapped in. Of course, his hopes were shattered the next day when the brunette cheerfully greeted him as Ros once more.<p>

The next few weeks continued on in this manner. Alba's mental state didn't seem to improve a bit, even when he returned to school. Teuffel was sure to inform his teachers and other classmates of the teen's fragile condition. They found it uncomfortable to call him by a name that wasn't his own, but they got used to it after a while. Soon Teuffel's own friends started calling him Ros out of habit, even when Alba wasn't around.

Teuffel didn't know what to do. He was losing his sense of self, who he truly was. He was being molded into Ros' image—his name, his looks, his personality, his _everything_. Teuffel didn't even know who Teuffel was anymore.

Who was he? Was he Ros, the handsome and heroic heart throb of every girl (and Alba) in school? Or was he Teuffel, shy and sensitive narcoleptic boy with brilliant powers of perception? He couldn't be sure. He couldn't be sure of anything anymore.

Eventually he started to get fed up with it. He didn't want this identity, this fake act that he despised putting on. He regretted getting himself into this situation in the first place. He wanted to tell Alba the truth and get it overwith. But yet again, the fears came creeping in, reminding him of just how unstable Alba could be—what if he told the boy and Alba snapped? Lost his marbles? Ros meant the world to him, and if he found out his "Ros" wasn't really his "Ros" at all, how would he react? Teuffel didn't want to destroy the boy from inside out because of this. But he couldn't keep it up for much longer before he snapped himself. He was so torn up inside about the whole thing, it was driving him insane.

He was still pondering on what to do when his own mother started calling him Ros, for he'd told her everything about what happened and would tell her the day's events when getting home from school. And this was his breaking point.

If he'd managed to trick his own mother into believing he was someone he wasn't, then that spoke volumes about what he needed to do.

He couldn't take it anymore. He had to tell Alba. It was going to be painful, and Alba wasn't going to like accepting the truth, but Teuffel just couldn't pretend anymore.

It was time to stop being a faker.

* * *

><p><strong>Shima: HOOO, shit's gettin' real again! Teuf's just so fed up with this, it's about time he tells Alba what's really going on behind the scenes.<strong>

**Teuffel: Yeah, I'm kinda getting pissed at you, Shi.**

**Shima: Sorry, babe~ Well, I can't tell you guys the next time I'll be updating, but if you give me some encouraging reviews and keep an eye out, there should be one soon!**

**Well, ciao!**


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